Over The Rhine

“Come on now child don’t cry, let’s give it one more try” were some of the hopeful lyrics used on Over the Rhine’s last album, the phenomenal double-disc Ohio. It was an album focused on second chances and questioning love at its darkest hour. What’s ironic about those words and subjects is that Ohio very well could have been the last try at making music for Linford Detweiler and Karin Bergquist, the husband and wife duo who make up the Cincinnati-based band.

Caught up in making a mammoth-sized album and planning a nationwide tour were the real lives of Detweiler and Bergquist—the same real lives that they speak of in their songs—ones filled with problems, sorrow, and eventual redemption. With their marriage on thin ice and musical careers in question, they decided to pull the plug on everything except the one thing that needed the most attention: their personal relationship.

Drunkard’s Prayer, a comeback album of sorts, is a celebration of their redeemed relationship and love for one another. It’s an album full of simple songs that find answers instead of questions, most of which are personal and speak defiantly of love that is confident and the key to every door.

“I Want You To Be My Love,” the album’s opening and most direct track, isn’t groundbreaking, but it arguably says everything that was possibly missing in the lives of Detweiler and Bergquist: the power to say to each other, “This is what I want.” It leads perfectly into “Born,” the album’s centerpiece that “thanks God for this new laughter.”

Aside from being a simple album, Drunkard’s Prayer also attempts a jazzier sound with “Little Did I Know,” which uses a few delicate horns, and a cover of “My Funny Valentine.” Both tunes can be considered a success, but it’s the honesty in tracks like “Spark” and “Firefly” that answers all of the album’s prayers.

It’s also wonderful to hear Bergquist’s smooth voice once again filled with hope and soaring with love; I can’t think of anything that has sounded prettier this year. So by all means, welcome back.