Album Review: Fanny Lumsden - Fallow

Fanny Lumsden’s work covers the best of contemporary country music – acoustic story bases that reward close listening to the lyric sheets. It’s rude to give away too much in a review, but let’s just say she has a gift for matching the familiar with the unexpected in a chorus. 

Single Peed In The Pool is a case in point – not where you thought you’d be as a listener, but damn it works. There’s a different type of feeling in Grown Ups and This Too Shall Pass, ballads that lull with bittersweetness, but then there are other turns too. The album's title track makes a perfect driving song in its pace and optimism, while opener Mountain Song (and its reprise as the album’s closer) sets up a soundscape ideal for a listener looking for an excuse to daydream for a bit. For a bit of a singalong, These Days is your go-to, while second-to-last track Black And White draws another kind of attention – a bit of slower country ballad for a broken heart. Overall this album, Lumsden’s third, works well for the track hopper or those who like to listen from top to tail.