Australian folk/pop/rock/whatever artist, Sophie Payten, AKA Gordi, unleashes emotionally on “Our Two Skins,” her second. Standout track “Aeroplane bathroom” is as spare and airy as can be, while “Unready” and “Sandwiches” rattle with pop-rock rhythms out of Sinead O’Connor’s playbook, but those three tracks and the other eight sink deep inside the listener with emotional heft. Beautifully produced by Zach Hanson and Chris Messina, using space and echoes that feature Payten’s swaying ethereal voice, the album roams over joy and anxiety and meaning. The closing minute of “Volcanic,” a tinkling, accelerating piano figure overlain by an urgent chorus, is another highlight. Lovely music, real lyrics, what more could one yearn for?
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