Heal The Heart
Self-Released, 2022
9/10
The sophomore album from The Deer’s Cry, the 10 songs here stem from dark, melancholic times at the onset of the pandemic, when the lead singer, Karen Thames Ballew, was struggling with isolation.
“Cavern Cathedral” starts the listen with very poetic, pretty singing alongside cautious drumming and very elegant strings in the worldly, folk climate, and “Dogwood Tree” follows with very expressive singing as Irish rhythms and Americana banjo make for a very distinct landscape.
At the halfway point, “I See His Blood Upon The Rose” is quite intimate, and showcases a very dreamy, bare demeanor, while the title track emits both soulful and pop qualities amid the very articulate and emotive delivery.
Close to the end, “Morning Light” recruits sweepings strings and dreamy vocals that help make this the album’s best, and “Jesus Sees Me” exits the listen with piano balladry that allows for Holbrook’s diverse pipes to illuminate the stirring finish.
A listen that’s packed with so much beauty, symbolism and diversity, you’ll hear traces of jazz, folk, gospel, classical, bluegrass, Celtic and world music in these gems that Patrick Atwater (bass, arranging), Bryan Brock (drums, percussion), and Will MacLean (banjo, guitar) provide the musicianship for.
Travels well with: Lynn Swisher Spears- I Am; Deidre McCalla- Endless Grace