Gas Station Roses

Natalia Zukerman's fifth LP, Gas Station Roses, spans slow and smooth folk ("Indiana," "Sorry Side of Town"), southern rock (the title track), and fiddle-laden Americana ("Howard Hughes"). Her smoky alto often comes across like a softer-sounding Ani DiFranco (whose longtime bassist Todd Sickafoose contributes to this album), particularly in "Come Undone" and record-closer "Little Bird," and her lyrics can be just as inspiring. In "As You Are," Zukerman sends the encouraging message, "So come on/ Just come as you are/ It might not even be that hard."