Here in the Pitch by Jessica Pratt

Jessica Pratt, the folk singer / songwriter out of Redding, California, turned 37 in 2024. Meaning she was – unbelievably – born in 1987, well after the 1960s. Go ahead and hit play on the song “Life Is,” featured in the video above, and I dare you to tell me you haven’t been transported to some tropical island locale from 60 years ago.

Here in the Pitch, Pratt’s fantastic 2024 release, is her fourth album. She’s been releasing lovely, critically-acclaimed music since her self-titled debut album in 2012, when she would have been only 25, and based on the strength of Pitch I aim to cue up those previous releases ASAP. She’s the closest you’ll get to new music from Leonard Cohen in the 21st century.

A gorgeous, dreamy, acoustic-guitar and brushed-drum-laden blanket of warmth – that is what you experience in these quiet-yet-powerful songs. Pratt’s voice is echoed throughout, as if she were singing on a darkened stage in an abandoned cathedral. Guitar, voice, and soft percussion are the mainstay, with an occasional doubling or harmonizing of her own voice, and “Life Is” is not an anomaly – check out “World on a String” and you can extrapolate the rest of Pitch from there.

Put this album on while hosting your next Kodachrome-colored back-yard BBQ or luau, or have it playing in the background of your next key party. Pop it onto your reel-to-reel, blast it through your hi-fi, light up a joint and be whisked back to the era of your parents (or grandparents?). Pratt’s music just hits better that way.