It seems like Scout Niblett is one of those low-profile indie singers who’s just always been around. So it’s a surprise to learn that her new album, “The Calcination of Scout Niblett” (Drag City) is only her fifth long-player.

Recorded with the influential indie-rock producer Steve Albini, the album is a typically minimal outing, with spare guitar lines, and occasionally a full band, breaking the mounting tension of heavy, claustrophobic silences.

Niblett (born Emma Louise; “Scout” is a tribute to the girl in “To Kill a Mockingbird”) sings with quiet intensity, like someone humming a familiar refrain to herself in a desolate subway station at 3 in the morning. You’re there, too, and you’re intrigued by the sound you hear, but you’re a little wary of getting too close: People do unpredictable things when they’re startled.

What’s startling here is how much power these insular, bare-bones songs have. Amid the crumbling electric guitar on “Cherry Cheek Bomb” or skeletonesque drum kit on “Lucy Lucifer,” there’s rarely a hook or a straightforward melody to help these tunes stick in your head. All the same, the music sticks with you, fascinating like an unsettled dream.

— Eric R. Danton

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The Calcination Of Scout Niblett mp3

January 27, 2010 at 11:34 am | Share |