Secrets

iTunes Review

Inevitably, Sierra Hull’s debut album Secrets will be compared with the early recordings of Alison Krauss. This 16 year-old bluegrass prodigy sings like an angel and plays like a demon as she traverses the same musical terrain that Krauss made her own some twenty years ago. But Hull is no mere copycat — her mandolin work is lithe and authoritative and her vocals are sweetly convincing. Produced by Ron Block (Krauss’ Union Station band mate), Secrets feels like a jam among friends. Hull reels off some superlative licks throughout, shining especially brightly on “If You Can Tame My Heart” and “Smashville.” There’s plenty of instrumental give and take, with Block asserting his banjo chops on “From Now On” and Jim Van Cleve taking a flashy fiddle turn on “Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool.” As a singer, Hull gets to the essence of wistful love tunes like “Only Your Heart” and “The Hard Way.” She also excels on “Trust and Obey,” an Appalachian-style hymn of stark beauty. The original material Hull contributes to the album — most notably the lovelorn “Pretend” — marks her as a promising songwriter. From numerous angles, Secrets is an album worth spreading the word about.