Rachel Sermanni was barely into her twenties when creating a ripple at Canada's legendary Calgary Folk Festival in 2013. That was my introduction to a talented singer-songwriter with much promise. Now over a decade on, and with many shows and a quartet of albums in the bag, a new venture begins as album number 5 joins a prestigious list of contemporary folk artists to release a record on Navigator Records. DREAMER AWAKE is an hypnotic and cathartic offering where warm vocals and tempting lyrics wash up on the shore of your listening island. Lightly spun and faintly textured instrumentation lays the groundwork for eleven tracks to induce an ethereal sense of contentment.
This is an album designed more to ferment and simmer rather than hit the decks in a blaze of glory. The quieter moments of life are more conducive for this set of similar songs to take hold and weave a magical web of artistry. A soothing detectable Scottish brogue adds a glossy coat of elegance to vocal parts that are wholly owned by Sermanni. Collaboration is left in the hands of a capable group of session players who lay the groundwork note by note and beat by beat.
The intimate merging of one track into another leaves little room for any one song to streak ahead in appreciation and adoration. From a curiosity perspective, the chorus part of 'Jacob' crawls into your mind like the proverbial ear worm, extending its depth of settlement with each listen. Outside of this, the draw of a single entity forms the pattern for extracting most when interacting with this album.
Looking at the list of Navigator Records alumni, the closest fit to what emanates here is the effect from the Katherine Priddy release a couple of years ago. An almost angelic exterior encases a substantive base that puts folk music firmly in a progressive state of mind. On DREAMER AWAKE Rachel Sermanni isn't afraid to toss some traditional instincts into an innovative pot. Rich components give the record a head start when beginning a journey in the midst of external ears. A release awash with success factors is a good indicator for commercial reward. Regardless of where the record ends up, turning attentive minds switched onto progressive folk sounds is a certain scenario.
