Indigo Girls (Epic)
Ice cream may not go with pretzels, but the sweet and salty harmonies of Indigo Girls Emily Saliers and Amy Ray still work brilliantly on their ninth album. Three years after rocking out with Come On Now Social, the Indigos have returned to (mostly) unplugged arrangements that highlight the perfect vocal mix of the ethereal Saliers and gritty Ray. Acoustic guitars and mandolins take the Indigos back to their roots, while organs on a few tracks, such as "Moment of Forgiveness," a deeply felt single about maturing in a relationship, bring a rounded pop feel to Become You.
The Indigo Girls still have their moments of undergraduate-with-a-petition earnestness ("Lay down your weapons and love your neighbor," as they implore on "Our Deliverance," seems a bit facile these days). Yet on the title tune—on which the Atlanta-bred twosome confront the tangled past of the South—acoustic guitars meet a jaunty penny whistle for an earthy pep as welcome as an early spring.
Bottom Line: Close to their finest
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