Ani DiFranco'Evolve'

Righteous Babe Records

Grade: B+

Ani DiFranco is the modern paragon of feminism. Beautiful, intelligent, able to speak her mind and incredibly talented, she is adored by legions of women and even some men who are bewitched by her intense and hypnotic music. Over the course of her 13-year career she has moved from neo-folk genius to all around adored musician, celebrated for her creative musical exploration and her evocative, mesmerizing lyrics.

Ani herself has seemed to acknowledge her growth in the sound and title of her newest studio offering, "Evolve." While two of the best songs on the album, "Shrug" and "Welcome To:," were previously released on her live double-album "So Much Shouting So Much Laughter," the rest of "Evolve" offers up a more mature, more musically developed Ani than we have been privy to before.

But more development also means more experimentation, and, while I love Ani deeply, it doesn't always work. The two opening tracks, "Promised Land" and "In The Way," are newer explorations further into funk and jazz. While her lyrics remain in top form, the music is more sparse and more dissonant than in the past. It's a weak opening to an overall weak album.

"Oh My My" and the title track, "Evolve," are also worse offerings, with "Evolve" not only musically inferior, but showcasing some of Ani's poorer lyrics. And in a true tragedy, the ten-minute poetic epic "Serpentine" showcases Ani's most amazing and evocative lyrics to date -- a mesmerizing rant against modern society, the music industry and current politicians -- but pairs them with music that is winding and watery and, in the end, a bit difficult to listen to. I sat through the whole song to listen to the full impact of her poetry, but it's not a track I will revisit.

Despite these low spots, "Evolve" does include some true gems. "Here For Now" is an incredible, Latin-inspired track that matches beautiful, syncopated rhythms and horn sections to Ani's distinctive, stuttering vocal delivery. The two styles match up perfectly, creating a solid and thoroughly enjoyable, even danceable track. And her lyrics are disarmingly vulnerable: "Thinking maybe I'm just standing here / 'Cuz I want to be liked / I know I need my instrument / But does my instrument need to be miked?" The studio versions of "Shrug" and "Welcome To:" are also great tracks, but they lack the live charisma that made them so electric on "So Much Shouting So Much Laughter."

"Evolve" is not everything an Ani album should and could be, but it's not a bad effort in the least. The album is meant to make the statement that she is still changing, exploring and evolving. If this is what it sounds like when she's caught in the middle, I can't wait until she's out of her cocoon.

-- Sara Tenenbaum