It’s 14 years since Lisa Hannigan first came to attention as the second voice on Damien Rice’s debut, O, and five since her last album, Passenger. She is never in a rush, and her third album benefits enormously from a sense of stillness and serenity. Producer Aaron Dessner (from the National) has framed the Dublin-born singer’s crystal vocals in an understated, often hushed atmosphere. Hannigan’s voice is sometimes unadorned, or with minimal (often just piano) backing; even singing ghostly harmonies with itself.
Watery themes predominate, from the lovely, adorational Undertow’s offer to “swim in your current, flow on every word you say” to the disarmingly beautiful Ora’s haunting invitation to join her at “home” in the vast blue waters. Several songs have a deep, troubling power: death and darkness haunt We, the Drowned and Prayer for the Dying, and gentle opener Fall casually suggests: “Hang the rich and spare the young.” These are stunningly pretty songs with quietly powerful undercurrents.
