Album: Over the Rhine

The Trumpet Child (Red Eye)

Ohio duo Over the Rhine have been together for some 15 years now, but The Trumpet Child is the first of their 14 releases to make any serious impression on me. Prompted by the Hurricane Katrina disaster, it's effectively Linford Detweiler and partner Karin Bergquist's tribute to American roots music, from the louche Dobro, vibes and double-bass groove of "I'm on a Roll" to the New Orleans funeral march of "I Don't Wanna Waste Your Time".

Bergquist's torchy vocals have the sly, seductive charm of Maria Muldaur, while Detweiler and producer Brad Jones's arrangements, with their blends of piano, guitar, woodwind, strings and pedal steel, recall the nuevo-retro stylings of Jolie Holland on tracks such as "Nothing is Innocent". Elsewhere, "Trouble" combines a courtly lan reminiscent of the Buena Vista Social Club with the wry lyrical touch of a Noël Coward or Cole Porter, while "Who'm I Kiddin' But Me" and "Don't Wait For Tom" affect the grainy patina and galumphing grooves of Tom Waits.

Download this: 'Don't Wait For Tom', 'I Don't Wanna Waste Your Time', 'Nothing Is Innocent', 'I'm on a Roll', 'Trouble'