2012 REDUX: Rose Cousins

Nova Scotia singer/songwriter Rose Cousins returns with her third album We Have Made A Spark (February 28, Outside), the successor to her exquisite 2009 release The Send Off. Named Contemporary Singer of the Year at the 2010 Canadian Folk Music Awards, Cousins delivers beautifully crafted songs of depth and intelligence in a voice of crystalline purity, even as the weighty subject matter -- notably on new lead track "The Darkness" -- digs into stark, shadowy emotional recesses. "It takes a deep breath and a bucket of courage to face the uncomfortable, painful things we work so hard to avoid," Cousins observes. "Reward comes from recognizing the obstacle exists and pushing through fear.” The sophisticated but unpretentious Spark was produced by Nachariah Hickman (Josh Ritter, Lori McKenna) and features a bevy of songwriter friends including Jennifer Kimball, Amy Correia and Edie Carey.

Rose Cousins - "The Darkness" (from We Have Made A Spark)

Rose Cousins - "I Were the Bird" (from the album The Send Off)

Photo Credit: Ivan Otis