Secrets (Festival) is young Allison Crowe's debut CD, and it backs up the hype that a series of local performances have produced. Whether remaking the Counting Crows' Raining in Baltimore and Leonard Cohen's Joan of Arc or unleashing her surprisingly mature original songs, Secrets is a showcase for Crowe's big, emotive vocals.

Backing herself on piano with minimalist studio support including Del Crowe's guitar, Jo Lundstrom's accordion, and Eric Reiswig's uilleann pipes, Crowe offers a tremelo-spiced series of evocative modern rock. There are echoes of Sarah McLachlan's vocal pyrotechnics, but Crowe is forging her own darker, more soulful style of pop singing that adds blues and jazz elements to the mix. A great debut CD.