HEAR: Diana Krall - The Girl In The Other Room

Her new album is quite eclectic. It starts with a great opening number called, "Stop This World." She covers stuff by Tom Waits and Joni Mitchell. But what's unique about this opus is that it includes songs that Krall co-wrote with her husband, Elvis Costello, with music composed by the lady herself. These songs are pretty decent. Moody, some full of atmosphere. What people may not like about this album are the Krall-Costello collaborations. But also what people may love about this album are the Krall-Costello collaborations. To each his own. Their songs tend to be on the melancholy side, which clashes with the rest of the album. The songs that I enjoy by those two are "Departure Bay" and "Narrow Daylight." The first is an ode to her hometown of Nanaimo, B.C. where the BC Ferry docks. Proud to say that I've been there a few times. It's quite beautiful as you approach the bay from a 2hr ferry ride through pristine (at least it looks like it) blue waters. Anyway, I digress....

I just wish Krall could have made up her mind about what kind of album she wanted to make. She does a bit of everything and it just doesn't flow...The album includes jazz standards that one always expects from her, bluesy songs, and it veers away from there, sometimes way out there. She delivers stronger performances on the covers than on her own songs, which seem to lack oomph in comparison.

Nevertheless, I look forward to hearing more songs by Krall and Costello. They're a good team.

::3.5 stars::