Stripped of her longtime conspirators in Crooked Still, Aoife O'Donovan makes her solo debut with a canny mix of soft-focus velveteen production and a raft of humdinger songs of her own making. On the opener, Lay My Burden Down, O'Donovan sings as though she were Alison's Krauss's long-lost twin, her vocals dipping and diving with a languorous grace, taking bolder, clearer possession of her own song than Krauss did on a 2011 cover. O'Donovan's strengths as a lyricist are formidable: weaving the particular detail of each song in such a way that fresh layers of meaning are revealed with each exposure. With some subtle backing vocals from Sam Amidon and addictively plaintive string arrangements, she even turns the amps way up where guitar solos soar on Beekeeper. A confident debut that knows its own stride. aoifeodonovan.com
Download: Lay My Burden Down