Done Gone Fire

Liz Janes grew up in Virginia, moving to Olympia, Washington for college where she played in the local improv scene making loud sounds. On her own, she recorded songs on a cheap acoustic guitar and a four-track recorder that were heard by Sufjan Stevens, who decided she should get into a proper recording studio. So with Stevens and Megan Smith of Danielson Famile, Janes hit the studio to record her singular songs. Janes calls herself a “one-trick pony,” but what a trick it is. The spooky vocal gymnastics of “Proposition” play against a guitar that warps itself around notes. “2:00 AM” is, as its title implies, a late night track of solemn weariness. “Honeybee” is gentle and oddly soothing. Janes’ voice is never quite typical. It possesses traces of old-time spirituals and blues. The title track adds a choir of disjointed voices and primitive guitar that’s creepy and refreshing. “Tristeza” is an epic, seven-plus minutes of eerie singing-in-tongues. Janes may be an acquired taste for some, but she’s every bit as intriguing as Cat Power in Janes’ own personal way.