Ali Handal's "Breathing Underwater" (http://www.alihandal.com) is one of the heaviest albums you'll hear this year. But the weight of this record has nothing to do with volume. In fact, this is a quiet, meditative album centered around Handal's softly plucked acoustic guitar. The intensity of "Breathing Underwater" is in its emotions.
The title refers to trying to live through a desperate situation, and in Handal's case it is a series of bad relationships. Yes, it is a well-worn theme but love is always at the heart of the best music, Pink Floyd being the exception.
Handal knows what its like to swallow the bitter pills of soured relationships. In "If Only," she gives in to her drunken lover simply because it's easier to do that than argue. Handal doesn't sweeten her biting reality. She's stuck in the trap, and it's suffocating her. "If only I could break away," she laments.
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The spare arrangements on the lovely "I Miss You" heighten the intimacy of the lyrics; Handal, her vocals sweet and fragile, sounds as if she's whispering in your ear. Her guitar work is subtle; however, it's never dull, and it's quite dreamlike on "Soft in the Middle," arguably the finest song here.
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