Motherland

Reviewed by:
David Peisner

Since departing the often irritating, occasionally interesting ’80s folk-pop outfit, 10,000 Maniacs, Natalie Merchant has done little we’ve found tolerable. Her voice has always rang with self-importance and her music has usually leaned heavily on the dull and the unimaginative. Well, her voice is still quite cloying, but on her latest effort, she’s at least done her best to steer our attention toward the music. “This House Is On Fire” opens the album with an exotic vibe, equal parts Ravi Shankar and Peter Tosh. Unconventional instrumentation keeps the tone slightly left-of-center throughout: an accordion, a pump organ, a banjo, and a mandolin help the title track avoid becoming just another drippy folk song, while the hazy atmospherics, produced by a mellotron, chamberlain, and E-bow guitar give “Golden Boy” subtle energy. Unfortunately, even a full orchestra can’t breathe life into the listless “Henry Darger” and the presence of gospel legend Mavis Staples on “Saint Judas” and “Build A Levee” only serves to point up Merchant’s glaring soul shortcomings. Still, Motherland is much less painful than we’d expected.

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