“Reprieve” soothes the soul

Ani DiFranco’s 2005 release “Reprieve” is touted as more of DiFranco’s beautiful blend of personal and political poetry and music. I have to say, I agree. Furthermore, I think this is an album that people new to DiFranco can appreciate far more than some of her previous releases, particularly “Carnegie Hall 4.6.02,” which is a live album.

“Reprieve” opens with “Hypnotized,” a quiet song of a meeting between two people drawn and held together by just enough pathos and just enough sweetness to hypnotize the other. The album continues with “Subconscious,” which picks up the pace a little, but stays personal and doesn’t become jangly or jarring. As the album continues, DiFranco mixes in some spoken poetry, but overall, many of the songs are smoothly hypnotic in rhythm.

The album flows very smoothly from song to song, and it’s difficult at times to point out precisely the track separations. I liked that - it gave the feeling of the album being a unified composition, rather than a set of individual songs.

DiFranco recorded this album surrounding the months of the Hurricane Katrina (in her New Orleans studio), and the moods and ideas in the songs and poetry definitely reflect the political climate of the day. That said, these songs feel a lot more subtle than some of her other political pieces; most of the songs feels personal rather than preachy, making it easy to connect with the album.

There’s something beautifully sweet about this album. DiFranco comes across as a lot less hard in this album, employing more subtlety while still managing to convey her messages just as adequately. It’s definitely a more approachable album than some of her previous works, although it’s not so mild as to be commercialized for radio listening. There are no catchy hooks or easy answers with DiFranco.