Making Me Break

Always straddling indie pop and folk, Heather Maloney falls into a more low-key indie folk production on her fourth LP, Making Me Break. Consisting of several acoustic guitar-centered tunes and slower tempos, the album isn't without driving moments, like "Day with You," or sonic atmosphere, as on "Rather Be Free," plus Maloney's delivery, which is in the ballpark of Neko Case or Ani DiFranco more so than less stylized vocalists, lends itself to the indie designation. Recorded in Nashville with Band of Horses' mixing engineer Bill Reynolds producing, it's Maloney's most mature and introspective album up to its release in 2015. ~ Marcy Donelson