Alela Diane, 'To Be Still'

The buzz: Clear-eyed, California-born folk singer Alela Diane is already a minor star overseas: über-hip U.K. record purveyors Rough Trade named her debut record, "The Pirate’s Gospel," to their best of ’07 list (alongside the likes of M.I.A. and LCD Soundsystem), and the album has sold over 40,000 copies in France. Now, her fantastic follow-up, "To Be Still," looks set to cause a sea change stateside.

The verdict: Caught out of time, Alela Diane’s folk feels as pure and strong as backcountry moonshine. She hails from the Northern California goldrush town of Nevada City (population 2,941), and the natural world—brambles, alder trees, antlers and the ocean—is everywhere in her songs. Yet "To Be Still" sees Diane outfitting her homespun harmonies with richer, more sophisticated orchestration. “White as Diamonds” expertly melds violin, cello, softly strummed guitar and percussion, while “Take Us Back,” with its sweetly arranged strings and high, lonesome vocals, manages to be earthy and ethereal at once. The quietly gorgeous guitar of “Tatted Lace” wouldn’t be out of place on an Iron and Wine record, but the sharp twang of longing that carries the chorus ("Suitcase filled with stones/Snow keeps me alone”) is pure Diane.

Did you know? Freak-folk singer Joanna Newsom, the Kate Bush to Diane’s Joni Mitchell, was also born and bred in Nevada City.