DIY Top 12 Picks: Sept./Oct. 2008 Showcasing independent songwriters who have released an album without the backing of a label. by L. Bowen, S. Halford, M. Wakefield, B. Walker and L. Zimmerman

BOULDER

Part Cree and Ojibway Indian, Ferron delivers her 14th album in a career that has spanned three decades. For those not familiar with the Canadian cult and folk icon, one might compare her to Leonard Cohen mixed with a splash of k.d. lang and a touch of Bob Dylan. However, with a style unambiguously her own, Ferron manages to transcend comparisons, interlacing an emotive tapestry via self-penned songs like the album's cozy opener, "Souvenir," and the heartrending "Our Purpose Here." Produced by New York City-based indie rocker Bitch, Boulder's credits read like a who's who of female folk-music legends including the Indigo Girls, Ani DiFranco, Samantha Parton and JD Samson, who shares the production spotlight with Bitch on one of the album's most radio-friendly tracks, "In the Meantime." ~SH