Emm Gryner — Girl Versions

Emm Gryner's attempts at reinterpreting a collection of "guy" songs is going to draw comparisons with another upcoming album of covers from a female singer-songwriter-pianist. But Girl Versions, in all its minimalist beauty, should be seen as distinct from anything Ms. Tori Amos has in the works. Still, there's a problem with the disc; one that doesn't dwell with the abilities of Gryner, but rather with the fact that covers — as cool as they might sound live — never really translate onto a studio album, they just sound artificial. But with source material ranging from Thrush Hermit to Ozzy there's bound to be a few new masterpieces. So while Blur's "Song 2" falls boringly flat and STP's "Big Bang Baby" is merely interesting, Gryner manages to elevate songs like Fugazi's "Waiting Room" and The Clash's "Straight To Hell" into beautiful hymns for the dispossessed. The disc's showstopper, though, is Def Leppard's "Pour Some Sugar On Me," which takes on completely different sexual connotations when the lyrics are being sung by a voice whose quiet power suggests both dominance and submission.

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