Kathleen Edwards- Asking for Flowers

On her third full length offering, Asking for Flowers, Kathleen Edwards breaks her sure-thing formula. Rather than bouncing between rockin' bar brawlers and super soft sleepers as she has on her prior two albums, Kathleen keeps it all pretty much right in the middle. Mid-tempo, mid-tempered tunes like the title track and "Oil Man's War" are the bread and butter of this record, with little chances taken. For one, it keeps her from making the same record thrice. But I think the beauty here is that the listener is compelled to find the subtleties and the artful turns of phrase in this record. The tongue-in-cheek Nashville romp entitled "I Make the Dough, You get the Glory" is the the tasty bite in the middle and "Goodnight, California" is the sweet piece you save for last, with Kathleen sounding like she's fronting Wilco. The letdown here is the attempt at recreating that same badgirl hit single with "The Cheapest Key", where she misses the mark, but it's reassuring to know that Kathleen's still got that same good ol' fowl mouth. The sang detracts from the polish gems that make up the rest of the album that prove Edwards is really is a tough badgirl without being so obvious. If you're expecting the third coming of Failer, you're out of luck, but if you're willing to let this seasoned and mature collection of songs grow on you, you're in for a treat.