Produced after an eight-year break from recording new songs, this weighty album finds Gillian Welch making up for lost time and then some. Her throaty contralto leaves us breathless on one inspired track after another. Gritty tunes like the down-and-dirty bluegrass number "Scarlet Town" feel like portals into another time and place, while sultry ballads like "Dark Turn of Mind" combine traditional blues structures with delicate, country-style harmonies, reminding us that Ms. Welch can't be categorized—she's simply one of a kind.