Cindy Kalmenson, one of the finest singer-songwriters currently working the West Coast club circuit, returns to the studio following a 15-year hiatus, to produce HOME AGAIN, her long-awaited fourth album, in a career that stretches back almost 30 years. Droll and spirited, this talented lady displays an inner toughness with a sense of humour as well as a sense of understanding. A continuation of both form and thought, this 13-song set has the same melodic ease as her previous work, resulting in similar waves of comfort. Emotionally perceptive, this is a present and comfortable record, imbued with a sense of collective pause and the ease of an artist at the top of their game. This is very much an album by and about a happily married woman in her middle age, looking both backwards and forwards, as she embraces the contrast between the outlook on age that’s often defined, country and folk, music in the past (acknowledging the struggles, pleasures, the failures and the small successes). You can’t be young and write an album as wise, witty, and emotionally generous as HOME AGAIN. Full of bright spots, reinventing her own singular voice and highlighting her own personal and artistic growth, this may be Cindy Kalmenson’s finest achievement.
The tongue-in-cheek Take It Out On Me confirms Cindy to be multi-faceted, while still managing to have a whole lot of sensual fun with her partner. While some of the tunes have a spare, folksy coffeehouse vibe, on this cheeky little gem, she augments her sound with rhythmic waves of percussion, guitar lines, Hammond organ and accordion. One of the moodier and more lyrically intriguing tracks, Catch And Release, is an ode to an uncommitted lover, while she has her fishing rod out to catch a keeper. Awash with atmosphere, pairing twinkling guitars that cycle round like autumn leaves in a whirlpool, with Cindy’s ethereal vocals, Lucky For Me, is a gorgeous romantic ballad that makes for an emotional listen.
Songs like Lady Liberty (With You) with its dreamy harmonies, and the wistful Just Above The Clouds standout, and contrast neatly with the self-deprecating sense of humour of Midlife Chrysler and Don’t Come Home or the more countryish singalong comedy of Hook Line and Sinker. With just her own simply played acoustic guitar accompaniment, album closer, I’m Everywhere, pays beautiful, if painful, homage to a life well-lived as she reminds those left behind, that she’s still around. Her soft, breathy voice sings like she’s sharing a secret, entrusting them with something sacred, and not only to mourn their loss, but exult in every joy as she sings from her heart. Cindy has this way of letting her voice seemingly quiver, rising up and down from syllable to syllable, forcing enchantment on listeners. An album that seeps deeper into your soul with each unfolding listen, this is a beautifully complex and wonderfully arranged set of songs that highlight the writing and vocal abilities of Cindy Kalmenson.

Dave Pomeroy’s production of Cindy’s CD is terrific, since he surrounded her with some of Music City’s session best.
—This breezy bopper (the title track) is propelled by a rolling rhythm track. Her feathery, likable delivery is backed by dobro tickling by Rob Ickes and a harmony vocal by the equally esteemed Jon Randall. Very ear opening and very, very good.

…Kalmenson, founder and host of the long-running Girls With Guitars songwriter nights, can write a strong hook and clothe it in rich, fresh storytelling. Plus she sings with a pleasing combination of delicate sensuality and sung-spoken rock attitude that lands somewhere on the slightly softer side of Kathleen Edwards or Sheryl Crow. Her songs benefit from the touch of bass master Dave Pomeroy (who co-produced the album with her), Dobro wizard Rob Ickes and guitar talent Pat Bergeson.

FolkWax gives I’m Not Leaving a 10. Cindy Kalmenson knows how to tell stories, whether they be lighthearted or sad, serious or funny, ballad or up-tempo. She’s got a few of each on her latest release, I’m Not Leaving. As a singer, Kalmenson has a gift for storytelling and phrasing well suited to the stories she writes. She sings in a light yet powerful soprano that reminds a bit of FolkWax favorite and artist of the year Gretchen Peters.

…Listening to Cindy’s CD will draw you alternately in with the innocence or defiance in her voice that belies her conviction for the way she views life, whether it be about relationships, the environment or social consciousness.