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V.K. Lynne - Black Halo Review

by Gisele Grignon

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Go on. I dare you. Try to stop your (insert preferred appendage/digit/body part here) from bopping along to VK Lynne's title cut (and the title to her CD), Black Halo. Based on the admittedly superficial but generally correct clue of a cowboy hat perched perkily on the head, I expected Lynne to open with traditional country strings, fiddle and maybe a piano for good measure. Instead, my ears (and previously mentioned body parts) were treated to a most unexpected, even unsettling Spanish guitar riff, followed not by San Antonio Rose type of ditty but rather, chip-on-my-shoulder, hurtin' lyrics and vocals. Think Jose Feliciano paired with a caffeine-infused Faith Hill. Sorta. Like the contradictory CD title, Lynne offers up an intriguing mix of genres.

By the fourth cut, "On the Other Side", with its soaring and searing vocals and sparse instrumentals (including a particularly effective maracas-like rattle (sorry, if that's off; no helpful clues on the liner notes or bio), and a violin that all but reaches into your heart and gives it a not-so-gentle shake and tug followed by a soothing caress. (I know; again with the contradictions). This one especially got to me, thanks to Lynne's impressive range and control: impressive without today's all-too-common "Hey you, look at me! Pretty powerful set of pipes, eh?"

Lynne's been described as roots, blues, rock, with a touch of country, but evidently my definition of country and that of other reviewers is miles apart, because to my ears, it's the other way round: Country with a smidge of rock-roots. You say tomato�If that analogy's too weak to be helpful, picture Nancy Griffith, Mary Chapin Carpenter with a sprinkle of Melissa Etheridge and a more-ticked off Gretchen Wilson. Ticked off as in, walking into your local honky-tonk and discovering the town floozie is not only wearing the very same pair of ass-kicking boots you're wearing, but she also paid wholesale. You know, edgy without actually drawing weapons.

That darker side is also present but subdued in possibly the most radio-friendly track: "Baby". That's not meant as an insult to this indie artist, who hails from L.A. by way of Pennsylvania Dutch Country (which may explain a whole lot). There's nothing wrong (and everything commercially correct) with producing a track that includes a strong hook--- that's hook-y without being hokey. Ditto the final cut. This strong, emotive and personal bookend to this unique and promising effort, is even more so because of, rather than in spite of, Lynne's musical contradictions. With Black Halo Lynne's more than earned her singer-songwriter wings.


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V.K. Lynne - Black Halo
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