[rating=2.50]
On his fourth solo album, Put Your Ghost to Rest, former Miracle of 86 front man Kevin Devine has done a good job of creating an album that is listenable, somehow familiar, yet creative enough to avoid being boring. Though it would fall easily into the indie singer/songwriter genre, to his credit Devine manages to intersperse the album with a variety of sounds and influences.
Put Your Ghost to Rest is generally reliant on Devine’s voice for its emotional power. However, stylistically it spans from solo singer/acoustic guitar to full-on rockin’ out, a range that, along with a voice of similar timbre, lends easily to comparison with Death Cab for Cutie’s Ben Gibbard. However, this is not yet another cheap imitation of DCFC; the sincerity and vulnerability of his voice also leads one to easily compare Devine, favorably, to Soul Asylum’s Dave Pirner. The two share a scratchy, yet somehow enjoyable and, again, vulnerable, vocal styling that draws the listener in. In short, while little about this album screams “must have,” it is certainly worth a few listens.
