Reviewed by Lins Honeyman

After stealing the show with her performance of "Enfold Me" on Portland, Oregon-based band the Followers' 'Wounded Healer' album back in 2012, fellow Portlander Liz Vice was encouraged to record some songs by the band's main man Josh White for a project that she thought would be a one off dalliance into the world of music whilst she pursued a career behind the scenes in film and television. Thankfully, Vice's musical career has blossomed with the recent release of an acclaimed second album but her debut is really rather something special. A cast of quality local musicians including Eric Earley of Blizten Trapper succeed in offering up a delightfully boxy sound which suits Vice's earthy, raspy and simply stunning vocals to a tee - all the while defying the digital age in preference for some analogue warmth. A variety of different styles communicate the good news about Jesus with the '70s electric piano-led soul of "Empty Me Out" and "Everything Is Yours" sitting next to the punchy blues-tinged highlight "Truly Today" and offer up the perfect salve to the modern worship sound that currently governs the Christian music scene. Elsewhere, Vice further acknowledges her blues roots by covering (the other) Josh White's "Pure Religion" whilst an impressive facsimile of the short but sweet Shirley Ann Lee title track seals the deal on this enthralling down home release from one of roots music's brightest talents.

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