There are a lot of reasons to be skeptical about Karen Elson's The Ghost Who Walks: Elson is a model-turned-songstress; Elson's record was put out on her then-husband's record label; Elson is a Brit writing music in a distinctly American style. And yet, all of these qualms are misplaced. Elson has the song-writing chops to prove that this isn't a vanity recording, The Ghost Who Walks is a strong enough record that it deserved release with or without Jack White's involvement, and—most importantly—the record sounds like it was written by someone deeply steeped in the sounds of Americana.
Elson's acoustic country strumming is backed up by organ, piano, accordion, electric guitar, fiddle, peddle steel, and drums played by a veritable who's-who drawn from lauded acts such as Blanche, The White Stripes, and Back in Spades. As such, one might expect Karen Elson's voice to be drowned out by the sonic flourishes that a pack of musical veterans bring to the songs on The Ghost Who Walks, but if anything her backing band illustrates how much substance there is to both Elson's songwriting and her vocal delivery.
Oddly, I've seen Elson's vocals unfavorably compared to those of Neko Case, Gillian Welch, and Loretta Lynn in various reviews of The Ghost Who Walks, but these comparisons are a bit unfair and manage to miss the finer point. While it's true that Elson's vocals lack the breath-taking power that some of her contemporaries effortlessly wield, her more homespun vocal delivery perfectly suits the collection of songs assembled on The Ghost Who Walks; she manages a breathy eeriness on the murder ballad “The Ghost Who Walks,” soars just high enough on “The Birds They Circle,” and give a convincingly Appalachian twist to “Cruel Summer.” Taken on its own merits, without unnecessary comparisons to other artists working with the conventions of Americana, The Ghost Who Walks is a fine, darkly-tinted contribution to the “anachronistic country” genre. Fans of The Pine Hill Haints, Bone Orchard, or Woven Hand will love this.
