Deer Creek Canyon (Bonus Track Version)

Singer/songwriters consistently find ways to employ the same old chords and instrumentation and turn them into something new. Seattle-based Sera Cahoone knows exactly what she's doing. She doesn't attempt to do too much; nor does she get too smart or too cute. She writes songs that flow naturally, with narratives that reveal themselves at an unhurried pace and with choruses that hang on a few key phrases and snatches of melody that firmly implant themselves in the brain. "Naked" is a tour de force, a tune that takes an uncluttered arrangement—some nice banjo tucked into the small band—and breaks it into a third dimension with a chorus that curls upward. "Nervous Wreck" kicks the banjo into a traditional country role, while "Every Little Word" uses the five-string bandit to add to the tune's power pop appeal. "And Still We Move" uses a pedal steel to underpin the loneliness. "Rumpshaker" gets by on the strength of the acoustic guitar, harmonica, and, of course, Cahoone's humble and stirring voice. The album's bonus track version includes the stripped-down "Dog Song."