Isobel Campbell
Issue #30
Milkwhite Sheets (V2)
By Tiffany Lee Brown
Published: December 1st, 2006 | 12:00am
Milkwhite Sheets is not for everyone. At first, listening to the latest release from the former Belle & Sebastian cellist and chanteuse is like walking through a mist of acoustic delicacy and self-conscious folkiness: other than the occasional shadow, not much can be distinguished from anything else. But multiple listens reveal a deep and complex forest, where each song is its own vast tree, bound to the earth by the long roots of folk tradition.
The tracks include historical folk tunes like “O Love Is Teasin’” and “Hori Horo,” all arranged by Campbell, interspersed with original songs inspired by the work of Shirley Collins, Anne Briggs, Jean Ritchie, and David Tibet of Current 93. It’s Campbell’s own retro-folk compositions that leap to the forefront of the album (with the exception of her evocative rendition of the traditional “Are You Going to Leave Me?”). The simple, repetitive lyrics and winsome melody of “Yearning” work brilliantly with similarly simple, repetitive strings. “Over the Wheat & the Barley” sounds like a familiar old school title, but is in fact an original, possibly the best here; fans of Current 93, Sol Invictus, and Dead Can Dance may swoon. Luscious orch-folk meanderings and sweetly solemn cello elevate the instrumentals “James” and “Milkwhite Sheets” from elevator-worthy interstitials to melancholic anchors of the album.
It’s hard not to wish that Campbell would occasionally lift the spell and stretch herself vocally. With obvious musical talent to spare, she could undoubtedly attempt something beyond the breathy coo she wields to such great — but predictable — effect. But on Milkwhite Sheets, she sticks with the feather-light girliness of her high register and saves the subtlety and darkness for her role as producer and lyricist.
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