"She doesn't seem to see much sun," wrote Music Web in early 2019 upon the release of
Quiet Signs, the "dark and gothic" third album by American singer-songwriter Jessica Pratt. Then, five years later, the sun seems to have broken through after all, on this particularly fine follow-up. The nine songs not only sound more optimistic and transparent than earlier work, they are also much more richly
… arranged. Where in the past the neo-folkie was often accompanied only by a plucked guitar and some rarefied keys, opener Life Is includes Mellotron, chimes and Ryley Walker's guitar. The result is downright beautiful. And that's actually true of all of Here In The Pitch, which reveals more of its understated melodies with each spin. Pratt's somewhat wondrous voice - somewhere between childlike and haunting - also proves perfectly suited to the new sound, which stands with one leg in the present and the other in California's sun-drenched 1960s. (RME)more
