Terra Lightfoot

Currently, it seems like there are only two types of Canadian singer-songwriters: those who strive to sound like Jeff Buckley and those who strive to sound like Leslie Feist. Terra Lightfoot has crafted a third, more interesting option: none of the above. Despite the fact that the Hamilton, ON lassie sings and writes songs, her self-titled debut follows little of the cues laid out by the guitar-touting troubadours she calls her peers. The electric, banjo and slide guitar droner "Straight Line" sets the mood, as Lightfoot matches it with a husky vocal delivery. But on the following track, "The Orchard," Terra suddenly seems uninterested in sounding anything like the former descriptors, coming off breezy and '90s indie rock-esque. "Sleep Away the Winter" shows off her accomplished honky-tonkin', while "Foxes" is all modern singer-songwriter post-punk. It's not just the surface differences that make Terra Lightfoot such an engrossed listen, but at least such surfaces make it easy to get close enough to read Lightfoot's mind.