The Woody Nightshade

Slowly, gingerly, Sharron Kraus moves towards a more modern sensibility on The Woody Nightshade. The modern elements creep in around the edges, as Kraus probes at universal themes of love, loss and alienation that transcend any specific time or place. Kraus’ dusky, haunting voice — evocative of such folk icons as Shirley Collins and Sandy Denny — conveys a depth of feeling far beyond the singer’s years. “Evergreen Sisters,” “Traveller Between the Worlds,” “Nothing” and similar songs are eerie narrations that gain resonance from Kraus’ delicate acoustic guitar playing and Mark Wilden’s atmospheric percussion. “Heaviness of Heart” and the title tune suggest witchcraft and other things arcane in their elemental imagery. Meditations upon romantic desire like “Two Brothers” achieve a gothic sort of pathos. Though a brooding tone predominates, The Woody Nightshade begins to truly blossom when Kraus lightens her touch and seizes the possibility of happiness, as in the almost-contemporary “Rejoice in Love.”