Dubbing her blend of dream-pop and singer/songwriter folk as “dream folk,” the New York City–based Wilsen fronts a quartet that specializes in beautifully melancholic songs. “House on a Hill” sets the tone for her 2012 debut album, Sirens, as she sings with a slightly plaintive tone over a gradually building ambience to sound like a twangless version of Cowboy Junkies. In the acoustic-based “Dusk,” Wilsen doubles her vocal parts while adding reverb. Her singing in “Lady Jane” (not a cover of The Rolling Stones’ song) is more demure. Though comparisons to Margo Timmins are inevitable, dig a little deeper into songs like the wintry title track and the standout track “Paper Ships,” and you’ll hear a woman whose style has more in common with Sarabeth Tucek’s arresting tension and Sibylle Baier’s way of turning crestfallen catharsis into midnight lullabies. The rhythms pick up a bit in “Springtime”; Wilsen weaves a lyrical narrative that lets her voice ramp up alongside vintage electric guitar distortion, proving she’s no one-trick pony.
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