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It's hard to believe, given the stark landscapes of her solo records, that Julie Doiron was once a member of a shambling, Sonic Youth-influenced alt-rock band (New Brunswick's Eric's Trip). But the singer/songwriter has certainly found her own voice over the course of five discs, and
Heart and Crime is a further refinement of her approach to "sadcore." As usual, Doiron uses her voice as though it were a fly swatter she's too hot to lift on a sweltering summer day: words drift by as mere vowel sounds, with consonants regarded as an irritation to be ignored. However, the mood of the album is far more like winter, with crawling songs that revolve around barren arrangements of voice and acoustic guitar. Continually downbeat, composed in shades of grey,
Heart and Crime is by no means for everyone. But when Doiron sings "He's the best thing that's happened to me / And I'm the best thing for him" (in "Sending the Photographs"), the light shining through the break in the clouds is beautiful indeed.
--Shawn Conner
