Recently, female folk has seen something of a national resurgence, with major developments injecting a new sense of hipness into the scene. Bluegrass diva Alison Krauss invigorated the NPR crowd last year with “Raising Sand,” a brilliant collaboration with Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant; young guns such as Joanna Newsom and Anaïs Mitchell have breathed new life into the underground; and artists including Feist and Jenny Lewis have redefined the hipster folkie. If anything, Moreshead was born at a great time to play this type of music.
Her debut achieves glimpses of greatness, despite its achingly short length. With quirky and cute melodies, Moreshead keeps the affair relatively sparse, building great foundation for her youthful voice and fanciful fingerpicking. There are other musicians about, adding strokes of percussion, banjo and piano to the mix. But the showcase is squarely focused on Moreshead’s idealistic tunes.
“I Love How…” is reminiscent of a young Ani DiFranco, so wrapped up in wide-eyed wonderment with the world that everything is beautiful — after all, the song’s refrain is “I’m falling in love everyday, everyday.” Tracks like “Daydream” evoke the plucky confidence of artists like Jewel, begging for introspection in spite of the fast-paced world around — a well-documented struggle of the folk singer.
Musically, Moreshead does not rely on hooks as much as a sense of atmosphere, where music envelopes the senses and uniquely pitched vocal melodies entice. One of the most engaging tracks is the rhythmic “In the Morning,” in which somewhat vapid lyrics about the morning routine are given a unique timbre, thanks to a driving drum line and splashes of electric guitar. A track like this would not sound out of place on AAA radio, alongside chic ladies such as Ingrid Michaelson and Regina Spektor.
In all, Moreshed’s artistic statement can be best summed up by one of her lyrics: “I love how I can make you smile / even if I haven’t seen you in awhile.” While “The Distraction E.P.” may not be a life-changing disc, it is certainly aural comfort food, the equivalent to slipping on comfy pajamas before bed. It will certainly make you smile, whether it’s your first listen or 100th.
Maine native William Earl is a musician and music writer. He’s currently living in Boston but has his ears on Maine-made music.