One of the recordвЂ™s most striking moments is just acoustic guitar and two voices: Lapell and Sipos, captured live in a room together, harmonizing overtop plucked strings on the transfixing вЂњDown by the Water.вЂќ The result is LapellвЂ™s most eclectic and confident album to date.At one of these concerts, her friends asked her to come sing with them on stage. Yet there are also spacious piano interludes (вЂњLeningradвЂќ), and even an accordion tune (вЂњRunawayвЂќ), that nod to how Lapell sounds playing solo. Building gang vocals on вЂњDevil in the DeepвЂќ culminate in the entire band crying вЂњHallelujah, Amen.вЂќ Lapell and Stringer also incorporate otherworldly sounds, including an X-Files-like keyboard part on вЂњUFO Song,вЂќ which tells the tale of a close encounter in rural Saskatchewan. Getaway sounds fuller than LapellвЂ™s previous records, her signature howl and warm, melodic guitar chops matched by a bluesy rhythm section. The album also features longtime collaborators Lisa Bozikovic on piano and vocals, Dana Sipos on vocals, Rachael Cardiello on viola and Joe Ernewein on pedal steel. The latter, a subtle nod to the вЂњMe TooвЂќ movement, may even inspire listeners to get up and dance. Trumpeter and composer Rebecca Hennessy plays on вЂњSparrow for a HeartвЂќ-her trumpet swirling in a sublime duet with LapellвЂ™s synth flute and electric guitar-and also arranged horn parts for band workout вЂњLittle Noise,вЂќ with Tom Richards on trombone. Working again with Stringer at TorontoвЂ™s Union Sound studio, she expanded her pool of collaborators, recruiting Christine Bougie (Bahamas) on lap steel, Dan Fortin (Bernice) on bass and Jake Oelrichs (Run With The Kittens) on drums. Closing the album, вЂњShape of a Mountain,вЂќ written in the Alberta Rockies during a Banff Centre artist residency, sets majestic scenes of wanderlust over cinematic strings (played by Vancouver cellist Peggy Lee, a Banff collaborator, and Toronto violinist Aline Homzy).ДЇor Getaway, Lapell spent time in the mountains, digging through her vault of unreleased material, and ended up with dozens of road songs to choose from. Opener вЂњGonna Be LeavingвЂќ echoes with the irony of someone who threatens to leave yet never goes-and the certainty that, sooner or later, every relationship will end. Getaway is bookended by songs about leaving. вЂњ Haunting voice and impeccable guitar playing.'Д¬lick here for EPK ||В videos || high-res photos || stage plots || and more вЂњ Traces ofВ Natalie Merchant,В Sharon Van Etten, Frazey Ford andВ Sandy Denny.' вЂњ Her pipes have a smoky smoothness that creeps into the memories of your heart and lingers gracefully.' вЂњ Powerful, sweet voice and warm guitar sound.' She's appearedВ at festivals including Pop Montreal, Mariposa Folk Festival, Americanafest, FreshGrassВ and Folk On The Rocks, among many others.В Getaway,В LapellвЂ™s ambitious third release,В is out now on Coax Records/Outside. and Europe, performing on vocals, piano, harmonica and finger style guitar. Lapell tours widely across Canada, the U.S. Her albums have won two Canadian Folk Music Awards, English Songwriter of the Year (2020) and Contemporary Album of the Year (2017), reaching #1 on Canadian folk radio and over 13 million Spotify streams. Call it prairie noir, or Canadiana desert rock: Abigail Lapell sings haunting, gorgeous modern folk songs.

Natalie merchant discography