The song that's grown on me the most from this cd is "White Suckers." "You didn't disappoint me totally," she sings with only a trace of irony. Devastation lurks at the end of the song: "Driving around in your souped-up Jeep, like you've got somewhere better to be." Hersh reaches a subtle plateau of emotion, raising more questions than answers.

Hersh's lyrics can be vulgar, which can have a jarring effect, and this seems most pronounced on this album. In a performance, Hersh introduced "Flipside," saying, "This song has so many swears in it I can't count them. And it's my sweetest one." Her lyrical styling keeps any song from being too coarse or too saccharine.

The instrumentation on this album is varied and interesting; unlike Strange Angels, which was entirely acoustic, or Sky Motel, which was mostly electric, this creates a unified sound of rising and falling energy.

This album could be a great introduction for those not yet familiar with Hersh's music, and a permanent addition for those who have loved her music for year


Beauty can only be described by the measure of equal beauty.   March 7, 2001
jared christie (Billings, Montana United States)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

Kristen Hersh has been one of the most consistent, underrated and wonderful artists of all time. This is not an overstatement. One listen to her haunting music and mind-altering lyrics are enough to change lives. I believe music like this will change the world. Kristen's last album, "Sky Motel," was the kind of record you loved/feared because it was like nothing else in the universe. "Sky Motel" was absolutly flawless, one assumed it could not be surpassed. "Sunny Border Blue" takes flight like a glittering butterfly and proves to be an incomprable work of pure art. This album will make you love her. This album will make you cry. This album will change your life. Kristen lives in a world all her own, but she is unable to change her the basic human emotions that govern all. I hope the sun always finds you Kristen, and thank you from the bottom of my heart.


music for grown-up women   April 10, 2001
fortune elkins (nyc)
9 out of 11 found this review helpful

unlike many in the rock world, hersh has managed to remain an artist while also being a grownup. she's been married for 10 years now, and has a son. her music reflects the complexity of life the contemporary, intelligent, self-reflective woman faces today.

you love your children and your husband, but sometimes household tensions pull your emotions to the breaking point. how can you keep loving and respecting someone whose faults you know all too well? the intensity of marriage can be surprising -- how sudden stabs of anger or jealousy, can give way to boundless love and joy. how much marriage "feels" seems to be one of the themes on this album.

how do you negotiate a loving relationship with the demands of a career? you can't always be with your kids when you want to -- and you feel guilty, angry, alone. how do you handle that?

how do you stay married, love your kid enough to die for, and not get lost in the process? is it possible to handle all the compromises and emerge not only yourself, but wiser?

how can you think about your past in a useful way, so that you learn from it; admit your follies and old bitterness, without becoming trapped in the role of victim? how to handle those old friends who still let you down?

hersh addresses all these points on sunny border blue. she sings about the stresses, strains, and contradictions with a blunt honesty, black humor, an appreciation for the surreal and the absurd in daily life, and the wry self-examination you need to get on with it.

this is her most personal and open album yet, without being obscurantist or sickeningly confessional. i think every thoughtful married woman can see pieces of her life in this music. that border between sunny and blue -- where one crosses quickly into the other -- is a place a lot of women know about.

the rock critic establishment likes this album ok, although some are giving it lukewarm reviews. don't be put off by what you read in the press. rock rarely deals with profound emotional issues in this complex and nuanced a fashion.

sunny border blue is a must-buy for fans, and new listeners may find it her most accessible album in a long while. surprisingly, the song that stays with me the most is the haunting cover of cat stevens' "trouble." i'm absolutely no fan of his, but hersh saw what was in this song and made it hers. she takes what was for most people a maudlin throwaway mini-hit and polishes it to perfection. you'll be taking this one to heart, i promise.