Published on Apr 9, 2002
The first rule of modern-day alt-folk is quite simple: Always
leave your audience thinking about things a little deeper than they
did when they first came in. Jim Croce knew how to do that. So did
Harry Chapin. And, to an extent, Dave Alvin knows how to do that
these days.
Add Christine Kane’s name to that list. Her indie release
Rain And Mud And Wild And Green is an amazingly powerful
disc which doesn’t lose sight of the fact that people need to laugh
as well as think deeply about where their lives are (something else
that Croce and Chapin knew).
Kane’s reliance on acoustic instrumentation (with the occasional
electric guitar thrown in for good measure) helps to keep this
music grounded in the earth – something which works well for her
songwriting and delivery style. I couldn’t see a song like “She
Don’t Like Roses” or “All The Relatives” working if it had an
electric core to it. Kane knows how to write a solid story wrapped
up in song, then deliver it in the most effective way, optimizing
its power.
Kane also knows how to strike a balance between seriousness and
frivolity, between heartbreak and happiness. Tracks such as “The
Way You Say Goodbye” and “Or Just Heading Home” deliver their
emotional blows in the beautiful songcrafting done by Kane and her
backing musicians, painting portraits which will stick with the
listener for a while after the CD stops spinning in their player.
But in the same manner, Kane uses realistic humor to lighten things
up, as on “(No Such Thing As) Girls Like That,” which dispels the
myth that boys will eventually marry Playmates of the Month. (My
only concern with this song is that radio will latch onto it and
try to turn Kane into a novelty hit, a la Jill Sobule and “I Kissed
A Girl”.) Likewise, for all of the heartbreak on this disc, there
are plenty of stories of true love as heard on “She Don’t Like
Roses,” and friendship as heard on “Everything Green”.
If I had to say one negative thing about
Rain And Mud And Wild And Green, it’s that this is not a
disc you want to listen to when you’re depressed. Even on the songs
with a more positive message, Kane’s delivery style will have the
listener locked in deep introspection – not a bad thing in and of
itself, but just not always what you need to hear when the only
clouds in your personal sky are brewing up tornadoes.
Rain And Mud And Wild And Green is the kind of disc that
every artist in every genre would kill for: an indie disc made
exactly to the musician’s specifications without pressure from the
business. It would not surprise me if this turns out to be the disc
that launches Kane into a level of stardom…but it would
disappoint me if it goes unnoticed. Kane has crafted a masterpiece
here that needs to be experienced by music lovers of all genres.
Rediscover the power of country-tinged folk, and see why Kane’s
name should be mentioned in the same breath as Shawn Colvin’s.
For more information or to order this CD, please
visit Christine Kane’s
Web
site.