Singer-songwriter Maria McKee takes a more organic approach on her sixth album. Most tracks start with the faint strum of an acoustic guitar or the tinkling of a piano, before gradually building to a restrained but emotionally charged crescendo. McKee revels in this less-is-more musical environment. Her multioctave voice moans, hovers, whispers, and occasionally soars with a cool confidence. From the yearning folk augmented with subtle, tender strings of "Appalachian Boy," to "Sullen Soul," a powerful riff-driven ballad, to the stylized, Patsy Cline-influenced country-pop of "You Don't Know How Glad I Am," she floats and weaves with edgy grace. The aching, soulful "Turn Away" is a riveting example of McKee at her finest, clawing her way into the heart of a song.

Some melodies don't resonate on first listen but gradually take hold, and are aided immensely by the spare, generally acoustic instrumentation. When McKee kicks into a gritty, strangulated Neil Young guitar on "Everybody's Got a Story" before shifting into his "Barstool Blues" (the album's only cover) the effect is galvanizing. Always a dramatic singer, McKee's heart is obviously in this rootsy, often austere music, and her passionate performances on Peddlin' Dreams resonate with tenderness and intensity. --Hal Horowitz