Petal Falls - April Cope
By Michael O'Connor
I was in my mid-twenties before I discovered that it was possible to listen to a song with pedal-steel guitar, fiddles, and drawn out vocals without suffering a severe bout of aural indigestion. The truth is that there's so much bad country music out there, that the masters of the form, the people who can present a song that is both within and yet deeper than the traditional boundaries, are hard to find.
For me, the pivotal moment, was hearing some tracks from Emmylou Harris. Young Ahseville, North Carolina songwriter April Cope may well provide a similar pivotal moment for someone afflicted with the same prejudices, given that her second album, Petal Falls is crammed full of quality. Hardly surprising, given the presence of some veteran session musicians like Chuck Prophet, Pete Sears, and Jim Campilongo.
At the forefront of things, though, is April's voice - distinctive, full of character, and yet with echoes of the past. Everything, at the end of the day, hinges on her voice - a brave choice that sets her apart from the crowd.
When everything gels, as on Black Wing this is beautiful music that transcends its genre, like a smile-inducing surprise. There are gentle touches taking the song into a timeless space that take the breath away.
At other times, though, there's perhaps too close an attention paid to the format, for example this garden, suggesting a keen commercial mind, that will ensure that Petal Falls gets radio-play, but also keeps it too rooted in the predictable.
On the whole, though, the album shows a developed and intriguing talent.
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