With the recent passing of Rebecca Aadland’s husband and musical collaborator, Brian Tillotson, the title of her new album, Stronger Broken, is perhaps more meaningful and resonant than it might otherwise have been as she forges ahead in life and plays the songs that they worked on together on the live circuit.
But, the positive light is that such songs are now as much a tribute to his life and love as they are the product of her abilities, and what a tribute this album is. Wandering between rootsy delicacy and rock drive, between pop infectiousness and more ornate sonic machinations, between bluesy grooves and folk finesse and country cool, this is about as fine a collection of songs, ones happy to wander across the musical landscape with grace and ease, as you are likely to hear.
After “Carnival’s” pop-roots-rock kick-off, a song that sets a perfect tone for the album, we slip immediately into the more graceful folk of “I’ll Walk With You,” a spacious and understated piece that takes the stark beauty of Aadland vocals, a picked guitar, and just the passing of an emotive violin and weaves these three sonic threads into a breathtaking sonic design.
“We’ll Get Through” is a gorgeous torch song, “Broken Pieces” is a countrified and anthemic ballad, “Maizy” is a reminder that we don’t have to put up with our lot put to a lilting rock and roll groove, and if “I’ll Walk With You” is Aadland’s love letter to her husband, “Too Many Songs” is his lyrical response.
Stronger Broken would have been a deep and meaningful, intimate, yet relatable album in any normal circumstances, but given the tragic passing of events, it has taken on a heightened and heartfelt poignancy.
It’s a great album in its own right, but it’s also an eloquent and elegant sonic document of love, life, and loss.
