It's been nearly a decade since Loreena McKennitt's last studio album, The Book of Secrets, but An Ancient Muse picks up the caravan exactly where she left off on her mystical journey through the cultures of the Middle East and northern Sahara. The Canadian singer opens this album the same way as she did her last two recordings: with an incantation, calling out in a wordless voice across an echoing space, cleansing the air and the mind. What follows is a lot like those albums as well, a pan-global excursion centered on Middle Eastern themes and instruments cast into a dramatic exotica. Oud, dumbek, kanoun, hurdy-gurdy, duduk, nyckleharpe (a Swedish-keyed fiddle), and other ancient sounds from the region and beyond ornament her music, though "ornament" might no longer be accurate. With the exception of Hugh Marsh's gypsy violin solos and a handful of other players, it's the Western instruments that serve as ornaments on An Ancient Muse. McKennitt long ago evolved the Celtic sound that launched her career. She's virtually abandoned the harp, which hasn't appeared on her CDs since 1991's The Visit. The lone uillean pipe on "Beneath a Phrygian Sky" sounds like an echo calling from the McKennitt's past. Nevertheless, the Celtic ballad form remains central to her music, and she still draws inspiration from ye olde writers of the British Isles. Lyrics from Sir Walter Scott adorn "The English Ladye and the Knight," recalling "The Lady of Shalott." But despite McKennitt's soaring alto, the tale drags under the dirge-like meter and ponderous arrangement. The epic track of this album is the aforementioned "Beneath a Phrygian Sky," with distorted electric guitar accents and an acoustic guitar melody carrying McKennitt on another journey into her romanticized version of the ancient world. --John Diliberto

Red-haired, 20-year-old singer-songwriter Holly Brook has caused a Sarah McLachlan-Tori Amos sensation with her vocals on Fort Minor’s "Where’d You Go"—the most added Top 40 Mainstream track this spring. A la Dido’s appearance on an Eminem hit that launched her platinum career, everyone is curious: "Who is that amazing voice?" Meet Holly Brook. Listen to her debut album, Like Blood Like Honey. Then you’ll know.Holly is single-minded and steadfast when it comes to her music. And nowhere does that drive come through more purely than on her debut album, LIKE BLOOD LIKE HONEY an intimate collection of dusky, sepia-toned piano-driven pop gems. Think Fiona Apple if she underwent anger management, or an edgier, darker Sarah MacLachlan. Both women are artists that Brook admires, but her main influence is Joni Mitchell. “I love her poetry and her chords, and her depth,” she says. Indeed Brook’s own lyrics rely more on abstract images than literal story-telling. Brook also adores Mitchell’s willingness to explore musical territory outside the accepted confines of pop music, a trait that Brook shares. Who says a girl who can strum a heartrending ballad on a lap dulcimer can’t be a pop star? 

A move to Los Angeles in 2003 yielded several music-making partners, including Grammy Award-winning producer, Jon Ingoldsby, who has worked with Madonna and Elton John. “Jon and I instantly clicked,” Brook says. The two have become writing partners and he produced LIKE BLOOD LIKE HONEY.  

Brook’s song “Curious” serves as the album’s mission statement as she plaintively sings, “I’m so damn curious to know / And there are too many unanswered questions / that we hold onto to” over a stark piano and string arrangement. The song signals Holly’s relentless search for answers. 

The album’s centerpiece is the cathartic ballad “What I Wouldn’t Give,” which is about “wanting to start over and get a fresh start in life. It’s hopeful song.” Brook puts her own sultry spin on the vocals, infusing the music with a deep yearning. Throughout LIKE BLOOD LIKE HONEY, the spare quality of the arrangements, (the vocals are often backed only by piano and washes of strings) perfectly complements Brook’s pensive, impressionistic style of songwriting. 

It’s not a musical approach one might expect from the first artists signed by hard rock kingpins Linkin Park. The band’s guitarist, Brad Delson, loved Brook’s demo and offered her a deal with the group’s label Machine Shop Recordings, which will release LIKE BLOOD LIKE HONEY in early 2006. Now Brook is fulfilling her dream. “Music and performing are what I love,” she says. “If I can do that for the rest of my life, I’ll be happy.”

Yes, this 16-year-old Texan has ridden the reality-show wave into mainstream consciousness, but she's far more than just another pretty face (or set of pipes, for that matter). Cheyenne Kimball is situated at an interesting intersection on the pop map, one where the girl-with-a-guitar trills of Jewel meet the somewhat grittier -- but still reliably glossy -- tones of Sheryl Crow. Cheyenne's voice is remarkably mature for a teen, cut through with a dusty rasp that's all too rare in the American Idol era, but The Day Has Come is firmly grounded in youthful concerns -- like the frustrations tossed off in "Hanging On," which plays like a "Bad Day" for the under-18 set. The fact that the singer is obviously in no real hurry to grow up doesn't mean she's mired in fluff; the chiming "One Original Thing" takes on cookie-cutter pop culture with a surprising panache, while the poignant "Four Walls" deals affectingly with a near-fatal illness that suddenly struck her father. What's ultimately most refreshing about The Day Has Come is how easily Cheyenne dodges clichés -- especially the teasing Lolita variety. That makes it easy to judge her music on its own merits, and those shine through charmingly on every track. David Sprague
 

One might call quitting a lucrative job as a software engineer for a life as a singer-songwriter a risky career move. Fortunately for Vienna Teng, it has paid off. Within two years of leaving her Silicon Valley career behind, 27-year-old Teng has appeared on the CBS Early Show, Late Night with David Letterman, and NPR, and has gained a large devoted fanbase through constant touring, selling 60,000 copies of her first two albums. Vienna Teng reaches a new musical pinnacle on her third album, and debut for Zoë/Rounder, 'Dreaming Through the Noise.' Producer Larry Klein (Joni Mitchell, Madeleine Peyroux) provides Teng with the perfect setting for an unforgettable set of chamber-folk compositions, which showcase her sharp lyrical prowess as well as her skills as an accomplished pianist. The album's eleven original songs show both an amazing lyrical depth and a broad musical scope, which ranges from the perfect pop simplicity of "Whatever You Want" to the stunning musical tour de force of "Ponchartrain." Clearly her most ambitious work to date, 'Dreaming Through the Noise' confirms Vienna Teng as a brilliant young songwriter at the top of her craft.Not so long ago, being a singer-songwriter was merely a hobby for Vienna Teng, a Stanford computer science grad who was on the fast track to a lucrative career, working as a software engineer in Silicon Valley. But she gave all that up to pursue her musical passions - a risky career move, but one which has paid off. The 27-year-old has already released two critically acclaimed independent albums: 2002's Waking Hour and 2004's Warm Strangers, which landed on three Billboard album charts and reached #2 on Amazon's best-seller list. She's appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman and toured widely, opening for such artists as Shawn Colvin, Joan Osborne, Patty Griffin, Joan Baez and the Indigo Girls. 

"People used to ask what kind of music I played and I never knew how to answer that," says Teng. "I work a lot with classically trained musicians, but most of my influences are from 1970's-era folk music. So now I call it chamber folk." Produced by Larry Klein (Madeleine Peyroux, Joni Mitchell), the album is chockfull of memorable songs that together form a landmark achievement for this bold new talent. 

The album opens with the moody reverie of "Blue Caravan," about an imaginary romance, and closes with the touching intimacy of "Recessional," which contains the album's title phrase in its observational lyrics. In between, the San Francisco-based singer-pianist serves up a veritable treasure trove of compositional gems, from the gypsy-like, café feel of "I Don't Feel So Well" to the breezy, country-tinged euphoria of "City Hall" and the sultry jazz of the autobiographical "Transcontinental, 1:30 a.m.," about a late-night misunderstanding with her boyfriend. "City Hall," one of several songs on the album which was inspired by events in the news, came about after San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom announced in February 2004 that same-sex marriages would be recognized by the city. The deeply moving "Pontchartrain," meanwhile, arose from the tragic news of the flooding of New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. The song's haunting effect is sealed by lush classical strings and a chilling choir sound created by Teng's voice recorded and multi-tracked 32 times. 

Together, Teng and Klein assembled a stellar cast of musicians for Dreaming Through the Noise. Teng brought in two artists with whom she'd previously toured: cellist Marika Hughes and violinist/violist Dina Maccabee. From that association came Mark Orton, who provided string arrangements for the album, and violinist Carla Kihlstedt, both alumni of Tin Hat Trio. Teng and Klein agreed that they wanted drummer Jay Bellerose (Paula Cole, Suzanne Vega). Klein added David Piltch, a renowned bassist best known for his work with Holly Cole, Lizz Wright and Sophie B. Hawkins. 

"Musically I really wanted to stretch myself," says Teng. "I figured, I'm taking off a whole year just to write, there's no excuse for coming up with the same old stuff. I listened to a lot of music I hadn't absorbed before, like hip hop, avant-garde chamber music, bluegrass - anything to get out of that familiar headspace. It all filtered way, way down when it came to writing." She added: "But every song on this album has something that I haven't tried previously, whether it's using the piano or my voice in a different way, or changing up the chords and song structure. I wanted to experiment and surprise people, but also keep that emotional truth, not just be clever for cleverness' sake." 

Teng has won accolades as much for her soprano vocals ("smooth and sophisticated," says the Washington Times) as for her lyrics ("smart and introspective," observes the Philadelphia Daily News). Meanwhile, the San Jose Mercury News calls Teng "a child of Chopin and Sarah McLachlan." With songs as powerful as the stirring folk ballad "Whatever You Want" and the gorgeous, string-laden "Now Three," it's easy to see why.

The album is an understated, largely acoustic affair, seamlessly melding elements of jazz, R&B, folk and other roots forms in a song-serving, rather than genre-adhering, way. There is undeniable warmth and wholesomeness to Kitchell's dusky alto, but just as evident is a knowingness that is ageless and timeless. From song to song, she manifests a warmth reminiscent of Carole King ("I'd Love You"), the gossamer touch of Joni Mitchell ("Words"), the soulfulness of Van Morrison ("Let Me Go"), the yearning of Al Green ("Can't Get You Out of My Mind") and the structural sophistication of Burt Bacharach ("Tinted Glass"), and yet the sound is all her own, unadorned, authentic and from the heart. 

In 2004, Sonya was spotted by Velour, who began work as her manager and record label. She recorded and released the EP Cold Day for Velour and began performing live with her talented band, sharing bills with such artists as Taj Mahal, Dar Williams and Susan Tedeschi. In 2005, she recorded her first full-length album with co-producers Steve Addabbo (Shawn Colvin, Suzanne Vega) and Jeff Krasno. As advance copies made the industry rounds, Words Came Back To Me so impressed the principals of Starbucks Hear Music that Words will be Hear Music's second-ever release on their Hear Music Debut CD series, making the record available in all Starbucks Company-operated locations in the U.S and Canada beginning April 4, 2006. The album will be available at all traditional music retail outlets on the same date. 

Working with her friend Jessica Harp, a country singer, Michelle Branch has revitalized herself and her music with the Wreckers' debut album. Delayed nearly a year while Branch and Harp submitted to a marketing tour with stars of the TV show One Tree Hill, their debut has too much weight for the teen-angst set. The country-tinged Stand Still, Look Pretty is brimming with passion, chock full of beautifully crafted songs, captivating vocals, and tight musicianship. Sheryl Crow is an obvious influence in sound and style, but Branch has an original voice as a writer, and it cries out loud and clear on these intense ruminations on love, heartbreak, and the search for some inner peace. The rich, surging, Dylan-like ambiance of "Tennessee," with a warm, rumbling organ underpinning the guitar-fired arrangement, is the ideal complement to a complicated tale of lost love and its accompanying melancholy. With banjo, fiddle, organ, and electric guitar lines snaking around each other, and the drums clattering on the bottom, "My Oh My" is a rowdy epiphany about enormous changes coming down in the blink of an eye. Stark and foreboding, with surging choruses and the steady moan of a pedal steel throughout, the title track features Branch in a breathy, Kasey Chambers kinda voice, clearly having a bad day being herself. "I am slowly falling apart," she cries in what becomes an unsettling exercise in self-flagellation. In your face all the way, Branch and Harp are a formidable tandem. David McGee

This rising star, whose road to becoming a recording artist was the subject of an MTV True Life documentary, makes an impressive debut with This Crazy Life. The disc showcases Joanna's powerful rock-and-pop-informed vocals, which drew the attention of A&R exec Ron Fair, known for shaping the career of Christina Aguilera, among others. Standout tracks include the first single "Let It Slide"; the Linda Perry-penned "Miracle"; "4th of July," an emotional ballad Joanna wrote when she was only 16; and a stirring cover of Dashboard Confessional’s "Screaming Infi

“I kept on hearing about this guy Ron Fair, what a genius he was,” she says of the now Geffen Records Chairman who molded the career of Christina Aguilera, among others. So although she’d received calls from various labels, Joanna held them at bay. “I didn’t want to meet with anyone until I met Ron Fair.” She got her way, and sang one a cappella number after another for Fair. “I’d been warned that he wouldn’t tell me how wonderful I was or anything,” Joanna recalls. “So I was surprised when he said, ‘I’d sign you right now if I wasn’t in the middle of a career transition myself.’” At the time Fair was leaving RCA to head up A&M Records. Suffice to say, Fair didn’t waste time working with her to ready her Geffen debut.ies." Joanna's debut introduces a powerful new voice; we're eager to see where This Crazy Life leads her next.