Sound Check: June 2008 by Trish Bendix, Blog Editor Releases Reviewed

Speaking of JD Samson, she's been busy lending her production skills to other artists these days. She produced a track on Ferron's new album, Boulder, which was also produced and engineered by Bitch.

Ferron is a musical veteran whose deep alto voice has been under the radar since she started recording in the late 1970s, but lesbians are familiar with her folk-soul work, which is why most will appreciate Boulder: It's mostly a collection of songs from her past reworked with newer, younger musicians like Ani DiFranco and Julie Wolf.

This works to Ferron's advantage, as it gives her an extra edge, showing that she can embrace change while maintaining her sound. Even on "In the Meantime" (the track with beats by JD), Ferron rises to the occasion by balancing a spoken word style with catchy stanzas over a drum machine, Bitch's backup singing and piano chords.