Moroux’s vocals sound at best like a male version of Neko Case over smoky country noir arrangements. At times the arrangements become a lot more folky, but mostly the 16 credited musicians (a small orchestra) often leave the songs in a haze. The often ethereal 80s production of Justin Tocket sounds out of place. The leadoff track �Cincinnati� blends atmospheric keyboard with at times obtuse lyrics. The chorus sings out, �In Cincinnati / I�ll be your daddy / Burn the house down . . . � It seems that the Daniel Lanoisesque production on this track only serves to obscure the track more. The next song sounds much more like a Neko Case�s country noir. �R Bar� has vocals that sound like they�re trying desperately to fill up the open spaces of the song. The expansive production is interesting but sounds like its stuck in the 80s at times. An interesting distraction, the track still suffers from a bit overproduced, stale sound. The better tracks on the album tend to push Moroux�s lyrics right out front. In �Vino Maliero,� the sound maintains a folk simplicity with fiddles and direct instrumentation that cuts much deeper than many of muddier production tracks. In a similar vein, �For Kali� manages to place both fiddle and Moroux�s vocals bare enough to let them breathe. The delicate mandolin picking paces the narrative nicely here as well. On �Blow Away,� the transformation to country from pop-production continues and the noir scene builds proportionally. Moroux�s lyrics already seem more assured. The shuffle skips along and the arrangement matches Moroux�s pipes. It�s a tune that subtly fades between electric and acoustic. Although rather obscure, his lyrical detail improves on this song: �With napalm and with pills / with drinking to my fill.� The song feels like a country road ballad. At times, Moroux�s vocals seem so overly emphasized as to take away from the stark power of the compositions. The album at times seems too vocally centered, when the tunes just need to be sung. On the closer, �Air Change� Moroux sings a nice harmony part vocals drowning out any backing sound. At other times, Moroux shows the grittier side of his voice, which seems to fit more with the subject matter and more live production. With simpler less ornate production, Moroux�s stark oeuvre should pack a more potent punch next time around. Jeff McMahon is a graduate student in the Boston area. He loves organic music of any sort and has enough instruments to create a one-man bluegrass band (if he had the chops). He loves to jam out to his favorite tunes and writes a little poetry as well.