No Mermaid

Sinéad Lohan discounts any Irish or folk influences in her music, but they remain a propulsive force behind the contemporary pop sheen of her U.S. debut album, No Mermaid. Her tunes have the immediate simplicity of folk anthems, but her quixotic lyrics delve deeply and sometimes dramatically into the '90s psyche. Weaned on Top of the Pops, Sting, and Paul Weller rather than jigs and reels, Lohan never sacrifices originality and character within her creatively populist approach. She is well served by a creative production (from Daniel Lanois associate Malcom Burn), weaving a swirling, textured backdrop of funky folk and electronica that perfectly compliments her wryly personal observations on life and love. --Derek Rath