Milwaukee-based singer/songwriter Peter Mulvey took five years to put together Silver Ladder. He'd been a prolific and esteemed songwriter since the '90s, but the changing music industry and personal life crises left him stumped. Then one day he made the conscious effort to write a song a week until the self-consciousness of the exercise faded, and the writer’s block was history. Producer Chuck Prophet (Green on Red) balances the contributions of Nickel Creek’s Sara Watkins (who adds both violin and vocals, especially effective on “Where Did You Go?”), Mission Express guitarist James DePrato, upright bassist Tom Freund, and drummer Dave Kemper, who toured with Bob Dylan for five years. These veterans know exactly how to play in support of a lyrical songwriter who finds much to say. Whether it’s the bare-bones sound of “Josephine” (where the harmonies provide the necessary color) or the compact Stones-like acoustic rock of “Sympathies” (where Mulvey is strikingly honest), Silver Ladder has the feel of a vintage album with variety and sincerity throughout.