Its not everyday that an LP has only five songs, but Joanna Newsom’s second release is an exception in more than just this one way. At first listen Ys (pronounced ees), which was released just before Thanksgiving of last year, might be somewhat painful to the ear but after a couple listens Newsom’s extensive vocabulary and poetic stories begin to creep into your head, building to a heroin-like addiction to her voice and music.

Newsom, who is a native of Nevada City, California, worked with an impressive group of musically talented people. The album was engineered by Steve Albini, who has worked with such bands as Nirvana and The Pixies. He was also half of the band Big Black. Van Dyke Parks is credited with the string arrangements. He has played with, produced and engineered for countless bands including The Byrds, The Beach Boys (Smile), and U2. And finally Ys was produced by Jim O’Rourke who has produced albums for Stereolab and Sonic Youth. He has also played with and engineered albums for Wilco.

Newsom’s songs, which range from seven to seventeen minutes long, tell elaborate and beautiful stories that she claims are all true in some way. Take “Monkey and Bear” for example - the story of two animals who break away from a farm where they have lived in safety and comfort their entire lives. This story continues to incredible lengths and the animals go through a lot of hardship, yet their fanciful trials and tribulations could easily be a murky, metaphorical reflection of oh so many lives. Just imagine, two young, fresh-faced lads, from the veritable utopia that is the Chicagoland area, striking out on their own - at last! - only to collide, rather violently, with any number of police-related incidents. I hear you, Joanna.

Besides her lyrics, the musical accompaniment is incredible. Parks does a superior job of not overshadowing Newsom, along with providing music that works delightfully well with the stories of her lyrics. With perfect production and inspiring originality this is one of the best albums of 2006.

Favorite tracks: “Monkey and Bear” and “Sawdust and Diamonds”

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