Ken Tucker

Cook is a Florida-born singer-songwriter who first performed on Nashville's Grand Ole Opry stage in 2000. She hasn't become a star in those past 10 years, but she's attracted a following in the industry for her emotionally raw lyrics. Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews her fifth album, Welder.

Tracey Thorn is best known as half of the British duo Everything but the Girl, in which she performed with her husband, Ben Watt. But since 1999, Thorn has spent much of her time raising her three children with Watt. Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews Love and Its Opposite, her third solo album.

Critic Ken Tucker reviews What We Lose in the Fire We Gain in the Flood, the debut album from a new band called The Mynabirds. The group is led by singer-songwriter Laura Burhenn, whose influences range from Dusty Springfield and Carole King to Carl Jung and Sufi poetry.