Though
The Ghost Who Walks is
Karen Elson's debut album, she isn’t exactly a musical newcomer -- even if it might seem that way to those who know her as the model who married
the White Stripes'
Jack White. With previous projects ranging from the political cabaret of the Citizens’ Band to the garage punk tantrums of Mildred and the Mice,
Elson has her share of musical experience, but with such wide-ranging credits, it was anyone’s guess what her own album would sound like. On
The Ghost Who Walks, she runs the gamut from chilly murder ballads with British roots to Nashville twang, giving old-timey folk and modern rock the same intensity and singing of shipwrecks, stolen lovers, and storms with a beguiling mournfulness. Her voice’s dark dreaminess carries the album, especially on more stripped-down tracks like the acoustic late-summer lament “Lunasa” and the ghostly shanty “Stolen Roses.” Though the album is
Elson's showcase,
White produced it, and his touches are everywhere. “The Truth Is in the Dirt”’s earthy, apocalyptic feel gets added heft from sudden dynamic shifts and spooky organ and pedal steel that recall his work with
the Dead Weather -- and indeed,
White's bandmate
Jack Lawrence plays here as well, underscoring the repertory company vibe of projects
White is associated with. His fondness for theatricality and
Elson's cabaret roots combine on “100 Years from Now,” a lovelorn song that starts off sounding like it’s being played on a wax cylinder, then blooms into a sweeping waltz complete with theremin, and on the dust bowl ballad “Mouths to Feed.” Yet many of the album’s most striking moments are decidedly modern-sounding: “The Ghost Who Walks” -- which gets its name from one of the epithets
Elson was called in school because she was so pale -- updates the murder ballad tradition with electric pianos that rain unearthly beauty onto the song; “A Thief at My Door” ebbs and flows, dipping into darker rock territory; and “The Last Laugh”'s gentle country-pop sounds like it could have come off a long-lost
Dolly Parton album from the ‘70s. While
The Ghost Who Walks occasionally feels a little long and scattered, it’s still a beautifully made album that earns
Elson a place among moody songstresses such as
Neko Case,
Amanda Palmer,
Hope Sandoval, and
Paula Frazer.