Debra Fotheringham didn’t leave music. Far from it. She’s made plenty of music in the years since her last original EP, 2010’s Time. Her voice featured on songs by EDM artist Kaskade and six albums by folk/bluegrass/gospel collective The Lower Lights (one song of which featured prominently in a scene from AMC’s Hell On Wheels); she even recorded an album of covers—from Hank to Dolly to Wilco to Lucinda Williams— with The Blue Heart Revue. But new, original songs were another story. Call it woodshedding. Call it hibernating. Call it whatever a caterpillar does in the cocoon. But Debra was absorbing it all, taking her time, ingesting Americana, electronica, bluegrass, rock of the classic and indie varieties, and more. And it all filters in its own way into her new album The Darkness & The Sun. Recorded over a few days with producer Scott Wiley (Bonnie Raitt, Elliott Smith) at June Audio in Provo, UT, The Darkness & The Sun is the sound of an artist who knows what she wants. The songs are her strongest yet—sarcastic and biting in “Apologies”, real-life romantic in “Odd-Shaped Pieces”, hopeful in “White Bird”, disillusioned in “Sometimes The Wolf”, and more. And Fotheringham’s singing, always great, leaps to a new level, the confidence gained by singing for so many other projects obvious. The Darkness And the Sun is full of timeless Americana-leaning songwriting and a killer supporting cast, all setting the perfect stage for Fotheringham’s beautiful, versatile, moving voice.