ANA POPOVIC "STILL MAKING HISTORY" Source: Blues Revue Date: 08/2009 Writer: Hal Horowitz

Few guitarists of either gender work a skintight-black-leather-pant- and-studded-ankle-high-boot ensemble as effectively as Ana Popovic. Don’t believe me? Eyeball the fold-out poster included with her new album.

That said, the singer, songwriter, and Strat-wielding, blues-based rocker has tightened up more than her clothes on her fifth album. Only one of these dozen tunes breaks the four-minute mark, with Popovic showcasing her sharp songwriting and arranging abilities and slinky voice more than her impressive but not terribly distinctive guitar playing. She penned or co-wrote all but two tracks, with a concentrated effort to keep the songs succinct. The menu consists of blues-based funk such as the horn-driven, Tower of Power-influenced “Lives That Don’t Exist”; slinky, soulful ballads such as “More Real” (a trio of backing vocalists brings gospel grit to this and other selections); and plenty of strutting, tuneful, bluesy rock as exemplified by the sassy “Wrong Woman.” Purists won’t be flocking to Popovic, but for those whose tastes are expansive enough to welcome blues-influenced roots music — admittedly, only tangentially on a few selections — she delivers the goods.

The acoustic slide guitar that dominates the thumping “Steal Me Away” is pure Delta wrapped in pop grooves — a direction Popovic should pursue more consistently than the stereotypical (if peppy) Southern rock of “Putting Out the APB” and the plodding funk of the simplistic- as-its-title “Need Your Love.” The opening track, “Nothing Personal,” is a jaunty, horn-punched rocker with just enough guts in Popovic’s singing and pointed guitar solo to be considered blues. Guests Mike Finnigan and Tony Braunagel provide solid support in Popovic’s touring band; here, she admirably brings them into the studio.

Popovic plays to her strengths — in particular, her expressive voice and ability to craft hooky choruses that stick in your head even when the slick production threatens to overwhelm the songs. Her pop instincts and va-va-voom looks don’t detract from her vocal and guitar talents, and they might help Blind for Love cross over to a larger, perhaps non-blues-based audience. Whatever it takes.