Thalia Zedek’s considerable body of work demonstrates a clarity of vision, a singular performance style, and an expansive range. Her ability to deliver raw emotions through her vivid stories of loss and hope, strife and triumph is unmatched. Zedek has long been a melodic songwriter in a series of heavy bands. That contrast, alongside her distinct blend of both direct and poetic lyrics, allows her to sing of the most difficult of life’s moments in ways that are both elevating and devastating. Out and proud her entire career, Zedek never hesitates to speak truth to power. The Boat Outside Your Window finds Zedek contemplating absence and distance, with songs as spirited as they are profoundly moving.

The band is guitarist and vocalist Zedek, bassist Winston Braman, and drummer Gavin McCarthy (Karate), now joined by newest member, pedal steel guitarist Karen Sarkisian. On The Boat Outside Your Window, Sarkisian’s counter melodies and oblique augmentations created with non-traditional tools like an ebow, add an otherworldly quality to songs. The grit of Zedek’s guitar and drive of Braman and McCarthy are met with synth-like swells and more harmonic density. The album features guests Nancy Asch (percussion) and Beth Heinberg (piano) whose subtle touches are added to “Shoes” and “Aliyah”. The record was recorded with Andy Hong, mixed by Seth Manchester, and mastered by Sarah Register.

The energetic “Tsunami” intertwines the personal and the political, the rising waves of pedal steel surround the song’s core of Zedek’s guitar lines. “Aliyah”’(meaning rising, ascending, exalted) is a song about the ancient tower of Babel and the utter communication breakdown that humankind is currently in the midst of. “Disarm”’ deals with personal separation and reunification while “Circus,” looks at broader helplessness and loss of control. “Boat” gorgeously captures the beauty and pain of seeing a person one misses in one’s surroundings. The poignant “Shoes”, a song inspired by Berlin, braids haunting images of the past with an unsettling present. Throughout the album, Zedek deftly uncovers how external realities manifest in our internal worlds.

Zedek’s mastery of songwriting is on full display on The Boat Outside Your Window. Her unique musical voice remains potent and pointed. Cultivating her sound with purpose and an unflinching view of humanity, Zedek’s words and music are both invigorating, and capable of deep emotional complexities. The Boat Outside Your Window is Thalia Zedek reaching new heights, reinforcing her status as a peerless songwriter and voice.