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Pale Sun, Crescent Moon (RCA) (STAR)(STAR)(STAR)
With each passing Cowboy Junkies album, singer Margo Timmins becomes more impassioned and resolute in elevating the swanky, honky-tonk saloon genre to an artform. On their fifth record, “Pale Sun, Crescent Moon,” the Canadian neo-traditionalist country-blues-rock outfit rips out a strong lineup of songs penned by brother Michael Timmins (the guitarist who also produced the record; sibling Peter Timmins drums and Alan Anton plays bass). Margo’s solid soprano shimmers through Michael’s thwacky guitars, adding up the “simple moments” that make life worth living on “Anniversary Song,” one of the few lighthearted pieces in a sea of somber reflections and bluesy slammers (notably “Seven Years”). “Pale Sun” paints a spartan landscape as Margo recounts a desperado’s drive through the Dakotas. “The Post” is downright psychedelic, with nonsensical moanings. Since their first LP in 1986 the Cowboy Junkies have never failed to produce excellent discs crossing vast musical boundaries.
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