Thanksgiving EP (10")

Rachel Baiman's 'Thanksgiving' EP is a collection of music to inspire an introspective holiday spirit. The songs center around themes of Indigenous Rights, home and homelessness, and love in hard times. Baiman called upon her superb live touring band (Cy Winstanley, Shelby Means) in addition to special collaborators - including flatpicking guitar master Molly Tuttle, who features prominently on a spirited John Hartford cover, "Madison Tennessee" - to bring these thoughtful songs to life. Thanksgiving allows Baiman space to stretch out stylistically and marks an intriguing followup to her celebrated full-length debut Shame. Baiman moves with ease from bluegrass, to folk, to old-time and country sensibilities over the course of these four tracks. Her adept lyricism is again on full display, as she sheds new light on the complex, bittersweet feelings of both hardship and hope that often intertwine around the holiday season.