Sarah McLachlan: Fumbling Towards Ecstasy (Legacy Edition) : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Sarah McLachlan belongs to a particular branch on the singer-songwriter tree that critics typically regard with distaste — well-produced folk-poppers like Donovan and Cat Stevens whose vocal presence and compositional skills outstrip their lyrical gifts. Inspired by stalker fans ("Possession") and the AIDS crisis ("Hold On"), the haunted subject matter of Fumbling Towards Ecstasy nevertheless grounds the understated drama and flat-out gorgeousness of her opera-schooled chops with context. Although she scored bigger hits with 1997's smoother Surfacing, this 1994 breakthrough remains her atmospheric soft-rocking peak because gracefully goth marvels like "Fear" are not only exquisitely rendered but emotionally accessible. It's not just art for chart's sake. As such, it's an ideal entry point for new fans, but this 15th anniversary edition does little more than tack on 1995's The Freedom Session acoustic disc and a previously released live DVD that both revisit the album with diminished results. Despite having mothered the Lilith Fair women's music festivals, McLachlan is intrinsically linked with the gauzy studio-bound beauty of her delicately layered arrangements. Without them, she's not quite fumbling, but she's definitely far less ecstatic.