ANA POPOVIC "UNCONDITIONAL" Source: Living Blues Magazine Date: 10/2011 Writer: Melanie Young

The Serbian slide siren traveled to New Orleans to work on her latest album, and the result is her best release to date. Recorded at both Piety and pianist Jon Cleary's studios and co-produced by Grammy-winner John Porter, the blues-rock of Unconditional is steeped in Big Easy rhythm and funk, with dashes of jazz and soul thrown in for good measure.
 
Popovic's mingling of styles feels smoother this time around; all of her various influences come together to form a more unified sound. Credit for this cohesion largely goes out to Cleary, whose fine playing (on all but two tracks) sets the mood for the proceedings. There's some roadhouse groove (Fearless), some funky swing (You're Love Ain't Real, her swaggering cover of Koko Taylor's Voodoo Woman), and some gentle soul (Reset Rewind). She even bravely tackles Nat Adderley's jazz classic Work Song and manages to make it her own; her searing vocal and guitar solo are matched by Cleary's organ, Calvin Turner's steady bass, and Doug Belote's driving percussion. A smoldering, extended version of Mercy Dee Walton's One Room Country Shack is both urgent and poignant, and one of the finest moments on the disc.
 
Harmonica wizard Jason Ricci drops by, giving Popovic a run for her money on Count Me In. The most exciting moment, however, is shared with Sonny Landreth; their Slideshow is just what it sounds like – an instrumental free-for-all that's worth the price of admission alone. Even so, do listen to the rest, for Unconditional is the sound of an artist who has finally come into her own, on her own terms.