It's been a while since we last heard new music from one-time-Chicagoan Rachael Yamagata. Hard to believe her last album Tightrope Walker came out nine years ago, but her time away has only reinforced for me how much her voice is needed in the world today.
I've seen her travel through many genres over the years, collaborating with a wide range of musical partners, but the one thing that has remained consistent is the mesmerizing power of her voice. I've been in the room with a lot of amazing and truly talented singers over the years, but very, very few have the arsenal of emotions she does, paired with the kind of vocals that always sound grounded in gritty reality even as they soar into the stars. And that's just what she does again on her new album Starlit Alchemy.
How was that for a segue?
Yamagata doesn't really work within the context of the present, instead opting to create songs unrooted in any modern moment, firmly rooted in her own notion of being fully present in her own moment. Because of this the resulting album here feels like a grand entry in the evergreen Great American Songbook, with the core of each composition easily translating to simple yet undeniably affecting singular songs. Yamagata drapes a broadly cinematic sound over these little diamonds to create shimmering compositions that ebb and flow, eventually submerging you in inescapable emotional currents anchored by her grand and unique voice. For an album named after skyward longing, this is powered by the yearning for communal human connection, and a worthy addition to her already impressive oeuvre.
Music like this doesn't come easy; Yamagata has been self-managed for well over a decade, and Starlit Alchemy finds her free of any label influence as she self-funded its creation through touring, resulting in a work that is 100% her own. In a time where fierce voices are needed to call out from the wilderness and show us the way home, Yamagata's siren call is a welcome respite, and an invitation into a world of tumultuous beauty. Things aren't always rosy in that world, but they always have an honest weight, and a welcome artistic honesty that seems to be in short supply these days. Reach for the stars, indeed!
Rachael Yamagata is on tour now and plays 2 shows at City Winery in Chicago on October 23 (6 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.). Note: City Winery instituted a $25 food and drink minimum per person this year to help support the venue, so arrive either hungry or thirsty (or both!).
