music review: ampersand ep by derek webb and sandra mccracken

April 8, 2008

Ike and Tina. The White Stripes. Conway and Loretta. Eh?

Add to that list: Derek and Sandra. Webb and McCracken, that is. And from the husband and wife duo, a duet album that no one saw coming. Including the aforementioned twosome.

Their forthcoming Ampersand EP, to hit on April 22, was actually a divine accident. Caedmon’s Call, of which Webb is back as a member of, had invited him and his wife separately to write for their latest record. During the songwriting process, Webb and McCracken were eating breakfast one morning and they were talking about ideas and those ideas became songs. But they weren’t trying to write together. “Which is probably why it worked,” says Webb.

And so it goes. Those songs became an EP. And it does work, Derek. Very well.

The confessional “Valentine” begins with an AM radio-mixed, soulful loop, with a xylophone overcast. Throw in some banjo and Rhodes, the duo waxes about the joys of engagement and marriage. The song showcases Webb’s vintage falsetto and the left-of-center harmonies of McCracken.

“When the Summer’s Gone” channels The Cardigans and Nina Persson via Long Gone Before Daylight. This alt-country gem bespeaks of rediscovering the innocence of romance. “You are the one to whom my heart belongs…” bellows McCracken.

“You know I’d rather fight with you/If that’s the only way/The way to be close to you/Oh, I’m not lying” opens the third song on the EP, “Watch Your Mouth,” which could have easily been a tune that missed the cut for Webb’s third solo album, Mockingbird. Dealing with the weighty issue of conflict and how we miss the mark in doing it decorously, the song is replete with quirky chord progressions, a clunky upright, and that xylophone again - thanks Andrew Bird for making it so cool!

The haunting “When the Lights Go Out,” might very well be the highlight of the EP. Not to mention, the banjo and piano-tinged duet with McCracken’s alto croon is custom fitted for a Grey’s Anatomy closing minutes montage. McCracken pontificates, “If life is full of living/And love is for the strong/I don’t know how I got here/But I know that he belongs.”

“If Not For You” is your undisguised, unfettered anthem of love. In the vein of the Indigo Girls, this single acoustic ditty takes stays away from the esoteric and pulls a page out of the “Keep It Simple Stupid” songbook. Transparent descriptions of affection for the one you love. Including the idea of sleeping soundly by the one you prize, “If not for you/I would lie awake at night.”

The EP closes with the minimalist and poppy “My Finest Misfortune.”

This is just a melodically smart, sophisticated and intimate affair. It’s a natural extension for Webb and McCracken, every bit as personal as anything they’ve ever recorded.

So here’s to hoping that Webb and McCracken accidentally record a full-length album together in the near future.

On purpose.

Posted in independent music, music, review