Larkin Grimm - Chasing an Illusion (2017)

As on Larkin Grimm's previous records, Chasing an Illusion pivots around the Harlem singer's commanding voice, a bloody howl that is fierce enough to gobble people whole and spit out their souls But the music here is freer than in her past work. Often, the playing veers into territory suggesting adventurous corners of jazz. Combined with Grimm's vocal heft and hippie underpinnings, the subsequent work frequently brings to mind Astral Weeks (an album that Grimm, naturally, has never heard). Meanwhile, her songwriting remains potent and considered. Lyrics are more direct than on past records, particularly those addressing motherhood - the album's recurring, if not quite dominant, theme. These songs dig deep, exploring an emotional openness that can feel unusually raw, vulnerable, and, at times, ferocious.