First Listen: Kathryn Calder, 'Bright And Vivid'

Bright and Vivid is a step in a new direction for New Pornographers member Kathryn Calder  This is her second solo album, and compared to her first, 2010's Are You My Mother?, it is clear that Ms. Calder is experimenting-- and quite successfully-- with different sounds and eclectic rhythms. She has moved significantly from the cozy but safe Regina-Spektor feel to a slightly more daring approach within the world of female indie artists. The disc is full of echoic guitar plucking, and lovely vocals add an overall dreamy tone to it.


Calder has done a wonderful job mixing a far-off, starry-night feel and a higher-paced synth-pop vibe. On a close listen, you can try to dissect the numerous sounds exuding from the stereo, including tambourine, French horn, violin, cello, mandolin and even hand claps. It is not exactly clear what each song is about, and in this, the listener is left to envisage quite a bit, perhaps playing more off the music than the lyrics, challenging the imagination.


All of which pile atop one another in sequence. But "One Two Three," the opening track on Kathryn Calder's second solo disc, is missing something besides "four": Calder herself. It's a full minute before her voice enters the din, and even then it's faint and muffled — as though she's shown up late to her own party, and would rather not make a big scene of it.


When Calder appeared on the pop scene in 2005, it was also as a latecomer, pinch-hitting with The New Pornographers when Neko Case was too busy with her solo career to tour. That Calder quickly became a full member — no easy trick, considering how many big personalities already existed in the group — speaks to something essential in her philosophy of music-making. Calder's contributions to The New Pornographers, even when she sings lead, are stealthy and subtle, more texture than melody.


Bright and Vivid, out Oct. 25, bears that philosophy out in widescreen: The music is as expansive as the title promises, but Calder seems content blending in with the landscape. It's only in the most fleeting moments that her voice, a sweet and airy instrument, leaps out of the mix to let you know she's still there.


All about: Are You My Mother?,   Kathryn Calder