Manzanita

Album review

Since 2012, Shana Cleveland has been lead guitarist and vocalist for La Luz, an L.A. band with a predilection for punkish surf-rock licks and piercing harmonies. Cleveland's solo work, however, is cut from a different cloth: quieter, more meditative and entranced by the power of silence and space. She has described her gorgeous second solo effort, Manzanita, as "a supernatural love album set in the California wilderness."; in fact, the title refers to an evergreen tree found in the Golden State. Building on the warm, splintered acoustic vibe of 2019's Night of the Worm Moon, the album feels deeply connected to nature and the human condition. 

That's largely due to sparse songs with a watercolor-tinted psychedelic-folk vibe. Mellotron drones uneasily in the background of the sparse "A Ghost," while acoustic guitar sways gently throughout highlight "Quick Winter Sun," and pedal steel and piano swirl around the moody "Babe." Elsewhere, dulcimer, glockenspiel, and harpsichord add whispery textures, while Cleveland noted she used synthesizers "as a way of recreating the atmosphere of being outside in the natural world while in the studio." 

Throughout Manzanita, her crisp, haunting voice always remains at the forefront, searching for connection ("I am a ghost and I'm trying/ To show you what I do/ Can I come through?/ Through you?") and capturing the exquisite beauty around her. Things aren't always idyllic—"Ten Hour Drive Through West Coast Disaster'' finds Cleveland reciting lyrics, spoken-word-style, that reference wildfires, above a backdrop of solemn, funereal music. However, her sense of wonder is never far from Manzanita's surface—making this LP one of 2023's most compelling listens. © Annie Zaleski/Qobuz