Mia Doi Todd - Come Out Of Your Mine (1999)

On her first album, Mia Doi Todd's songs rose out of and above the typical folkie aesthetic, and for certain brief stretches the album even seemed to take on a theatrical mood. Her sophomore effort delves even deeper into that spirit and sound. In fact, many of the melodies on Come Out of Your Mine are imbued with a cabaret-quality drama. Todd's paeans to love ("Save Me," an angelic blues, the lovely "Sunday Afternoon," "Your Room") are still present and retain the same breezy sweetness and intentional innocence, but her lyrics here just as frequently betray an artful austerity that was only present for brief moments on the debut. And she doesn't merely write and perform her songs but rather stages and interprets them, which is a far more satisfying ability. But while her music is melodramatic, it is a supremely understated sort of melodrama, if that is indeed possible. This sort of vivid reading is given the wonderful "Independence Day," "Strawberries," and "Jackals," a disconcertingly captivating poem in song, and after such a moving beginning to the album, it doesn't let up until its final notes are etched. Todd expanded her sonic reach here as well. The chaotic and bluesy "I've Got a Gun" evokes PJ Harvey, minus the electric backing, at her most demonically operatic, while "The River & the Ocean" is a demanding epic of metaphors, philosophical inquiry, and shifting time signatures that even manages to sneak in an interpolation of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" without drowning its decidedly grownup impact. It should be said that Mia Doi Todd's talent is an acquired taste, and that patience is required if you are to allow the attributes of her music to fully play out. But it is an appreciation well worth securing and may, in fact, be unavoidable: Once that arresting voice catches hold, it is next to impossible to shake it loose. The exemplary Come Out of Your Mine embodies all the rewards her artistry has to offer.