Natalie Merchant

The pleasant folk rock of 10,000 Maniacs was never what you would call hard-hitting. Yet
it's still surprising that Tigerlily, Natalie Merchant's first solo album, sounds so bloodless and
limp. Merchant's voice – childlike and oft imitated – has nearly deteriorated into
self-parody, as if it's too much effort for her to enunciate a phrase, hold a note or even
breathe. The production, by Merchant herself, sounds remarkably flat, so spare... More >