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There is always a hint of menace and reservoirs of force haunting the corners of Eliza Rickman’s voice, whatever register it occupies. Her presence on stage, whether she wears flowers in her hair, or stuffed birds, whether she plays a toy piano or a grand piano, is an enveloping, soft darkness, impossible to ignore. It is quite a surprise that Rickman didn’t even realize she could sing until after she earned a degree in orchestration from Azusa Pacific University, because her voice is the most enthralling and salient feature of any on the tracks from her new album O, You Sinners. And this is saying something, considering her deftness as a pianist and her subtlety as a composer.
Religious themes pervade Rickman’s work; her album is, after all, titled O, You Sinners. She is the daughter of a pastor, and started playing piano in church at the age of 13. But like one of her great influences, Nick Cave, her writing belies ambivalence about religion.