Eilen Jewell: Songs from 'Sinners and Strangers'

Eilen Jewell.

With a sound that combines folk, country, blues and pop, singer-songwriter Eilen Jewell crafts a distinct style that draws on roots music without sounding needlessly old-fashioned. A live demo, 2005's Nowhere in No Time, helped Jewell land a successful Saturday-night residency at a Boston-area club, but it wasn't until she recorded her debut album, Boundary Country, that she made a fully fleshed-out recording. Earning her favorable comparisons to the likes of Lucinda Williams and Gillian Welch, the disc was a sleeper hit.

Letters from Sinners & Strangers is Jewell's new album, and her first for a well-known label. Recorded over the span of a week this spring, it finds Jewell and her tight band coming into their own as musicians and songwriters.