Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter, Like, Love, Lust & The Open Halls of the Soul

by paul r jaissle

Barely raining above a hushed whisper, Jesse Sykes’ voice jumps out of the speakers when it first appears on the opening track, ‘Eisenhower Moon’: dark and smoky, her voice evokes a world-wary songwriter who feels every word she sings. Along with her backing band, the Sweet Hereafter, Sykes takes a tour of the back roads of alt-country paved by Wilco and Neko Case. The Sweet Hereafter, for their part, functions perfectly as a rock band backing a country minded lead singer: the Crazy Horse to Sykes’ Neil Young. In fact, the melody of ‘Eisenhower Moon’ sounds like it was lifted from Young’s own ‘Sugar Mountain.’ And much like Crazy Horse, the Sweet Hereafter are able to kick up some dust when need be, as on the rocking ‘You Might Walk Away.’ Sykes’ voice also has the ability to shift shapes and moods: from the haunting ‘Spectral Beings’ (of course, with a name like that, doesn’t the song have to be haunting???) to the upbeat, almost pop sounding ‘I Like the Sound.’ There is a comforting familiarity to this album, which at first suggests yet another alt-country chanteuse indulging her muse, but that would be selling Jesse short. Despite the familiar sound and mood, there is also a unique beauty -due mostly to her voice- that Jesse captures that becomes more apparent and rewarding with each repeated listen. By the time the final song, ‘The Open Halls of the Soul’ rolls around complete with a slightly woozy swing and full chorus of backing singers, you’ll be glad you’ve taken this road trip through modern Americana song with Sykes and her fellow band of musicians.

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