MUSIC REVIEWS

Paul Thorn, “Don’t Let the Devil Ride” (Thirty Tigers)

Paul Thorn’s excellent gospel album, “Don’t Let the Devil Ride,” is invigorated by his youthful years making the rounds in Mississippi churches with his Pentecostal preacher father. The lyrics are pious, but the fervor is very human.

Thorn’s colorful past includes achievements as a professional boxer—he lost a bout to Roberto Duran in 1988—and if his right cross needed more work, his musical crossover has been more successful.

His songwriting often combines wry or humorous observations with blues, country and rock. With onstage banter that bears an uncanny resemblance to the late Mitch Hedberg, Thorn’s live shows are must-see and his albums, over a dozen since 1997, are full of gems.

The songs here are mostly from deep in the hymn books but Thorn’s interpretations with his longtime band and top-notch guests add up to a fine collection of Southern sounds.

Sessions were held at Sam Phillips Recording in Memphis, FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, and Preservation Hall in New Orleans, with The Blind Boys of Alabama, The McCrary Sisters, the Preservation Hall Jazz Horns and Bonnie Bishop and there’s not a wasted note or an overdone sentiment.

Thorn’s voice is usually far from velvety but here he sounds even grittier and gruffer than ever, possibly reacting to the consequence of songs like “He’s a Battle Axe,” ”Soon I Will Be Done,” “The Half That Has Never Been Told” and “Something on My Mind.”

Ending on a high note, a version of The O’Jays “Love Train” is slower than the original, as if the conductor was offering you a chance to jump on board. It’s by far the best-known song here, but don’t hold that against it. Its counsel easily applies to this record, too—“If you miss it, I feel sorry, sorry for you.”— Pablo Gorondi, The Associated Press

Johann Johannsson, “Englaborn & Variations” (Deutsche Grammophon)

“Englaborn” was Icelandic composer Johann Johannsson’s debut album, first issued in 2002. Best known for his soundtracks, Johannsson received Oscar nominations for “The Theory of Everything” and “Sicario.”

Shortly before his unexpected death on Feb. 9, he completed a series of reworkings of “Englaborn” tracks. Some he performed himself, while others were covered by musicians like stunning vocal ensemble Theater of Voices, ambient duo A Winged Victory for the Sullen, pianist Vikingur Olafsson and Ryuichi Sakamoto.

The package has a remastered version of the original release, which developed from music he wrote for a play by Havar Sigurjonsson, as well as the reinterpretations.

At the time, some of the focus was on the electronics and digital processing coloring the sounds produced by the Ethos String Quartet, tuned percussion and traditional keyboard instruments like piano and harmonium. Sixteen years later, the album’s sonic palette is eminently familiar, but the compositions remain just as seductive, dramatic and captivating.

Phil Spector built walls of sound but Johannsson’s compositions are like kaleidoscopes of sieves. There are multiple layers but there’s also a skillful economy to the motifs—a combination at once airy, dense and vibrant.

The variations aren’t a complete set, though some tunes get multiple covers. Johannsson’s input validates them and they range from basic to complex to frenzied. Some of Johannsson’s ability of compression gets diluted but the mysteriousness remains intact. Theater of Voices’ version of “Odi et Amo,” which opens the original album, becomes an elegiac coda, a requiem for the innovative composer.

Though seemingly ideal for winter, the 16 tracks on the 48 minutes of “Englaborn” trigger deep impressions in any season.—Pablo Gorondi, The Associated Press Kim Richey, “Edgeland” (Yep

Roc Records)

Kim Richey has been winning over critics for years, but music buyers have been slower to catch on. On her eighth album, “Edgeland,” she once again demonstrates the range of her talent.

From the delicious opening guitar lick on “The Red Line,” a deceptively simple song about a ride on Chicago’s “L,” Richey shows off her ability to turn mundane details into A-level song craft. The song lifts an ordinary train ride into art in a way that a lot of songwriters try but few pull off.

In Richey’s hands, the effect is dazzling. She puts listeners on the train beside her, though it feels like she’s alone there, lost in thought and discerning observation.

Richey sustains that level of craftsmanship through a dozen new songs, including collaborations with Chuck Prophet, Robyn Hitchcock, Mike Henderson and other Nashville mainstays. She makes the most of terrific ensemble playing, and her old-soul singing conveys sadness and energy all at once.

Those who know Richey’s work will find fresh magic here—songs like “Pin a Rose,” a ballad about lending a sympathetic ear to a heartbroken friend, and “Can’t Let You Go,” another moving Richey anthem. Throughout it all, she matches surprising twists of melody to lyrics that bring fresh wonder to age-old subjects.

For those unfamiliar with Richey’s impressive body of work, “Edgeland” invites a deeper listen. And if it inspires a longer journey back through her entire catalog, that will be a ride worth taking.—Scott Stroud, The Associated Press

George Ezra, “Staying at Tamara’s” (Columbia Records)

George Ezra can’t stand still. “Staying at Tamara’s,” his second album, arrives four years after “Wanted for Voyage,” which included breakthrough smash “Budapest,” and led to two years on tour and plenty of traveling.

Ezra gets writer’s block at home, so he took to the road to hone his songwriting. Barcelona was his first destination—the album title references the shared Airbnb he stayed at—but later stops in his native Britain included a pig farm and a pair of sheds.

Whether near or far, Ezra’s world view barely seems to change and usually some befuddlement involved. Opener “Pretty Shining People,” for example, has a catchy chorus, and lyrics like “What a terrible time/ To be alive if you’re prone/To overthinking,” while he muses what it would be like to win the lottery—had he bothered to buy a ticket.

Traveling is presented as a good alternative to whatever may be ailing you—“I will ride on down the road” or “With a suitcase in your hand/It don’t matter now.” Whether it’s the way forward to a new start or just escapism is in the eye of the beholder.

“Shotgun” fulfils Ezra’s long-standing desire to have a song that sounds like it could be from Paul Simon’s “Graceland,” though the link is tenuous, achieved mostly by the sound of its slinky bass.

The album’s general mood is upbeat and some of the best songs are saved for the second half—ballad “Hold My Girl” and “Saviour,” which sounds like the theme for a train trip through the Wild West.

George Ezra’s baritone is the voice of a storyteller—deep, resonant and expressive—but he should look harder for stories to tell.—Pablo Gorondi, The Associated Press