Tift Merritt – Another Country

As indicated by the “free man in Paris” liner notes, the foreign land is France, though the rapturously romantic title ballad informs that the other country is also “love.” Fear not, Tift fans, she hasn’t turned chanteuse on us, except for the concluding “Mille Tendresses” (“A Thousand Tendernesses”). Musically and lyrically, Merritt’s third album is the most stripped-down and straightforward of her career, with all songs written by Merritt, and her regular band providing most of the musical support (augmented by guitarists Charlie Sexton and Doug Pettibone).

Where her Bramble Rose debut introduced an artist of enormous promise, the Tambourine follow-up suffered from overproduction and eclecticism, as if it were a make-or-break attempt to take her career to the next level. Working again with producer George Drakoulias, she now sounds like a mature artist who is in it for the long haul, no longer the alt-country ingenue to be shaped or molded. Or “the mixed-up girl with plenty to hide,” as she describes herself in “I Know What I’m Looking For Now”, the pivotal track here.

Though “Hopes Too High” and “Keep You Happy” flirt with folkie preciousness, the conversational phrasing, intimacy of the material, and spare, airy arrangements suggest an artist with nothing to hide and nothing to prove. Encompassing the affirmation of “Broken” (“I think I will break but I mend”), the melodic twists of the hymn-like “Morning Is My Destination”, and the older-but-wiser country balladry of “Tender Branch”, Merritt’s first release for Fantasy holds together better than either of her two for Lost Highway. She sounds like an artist who knows exactly who she is.