If you've had the good fortune to see Erin McKeown support Ani on tour, you know that she does it all. Hot jazz. Alt.country. Folk. Rock. It's one delicious stew that she's a- cookin' and Erin's second studio album, 2000's Distillation, puts these diverse songwriting strengths on display. Hell, she even combines genres within songs, as in "Love in 2 Parts," which starts with a bouncy earth-funk and slides into the tender, open sorrow of a country ballad.

Erin doesn't just sample styles- she swallows them whole and makes them a part of her, from the authentic relaxed vernacular and dobro of "The Little Cowboy" to her confident, yet appropriately restrained Tin Pan Alley rendition of Rogers and Hart's "You Mustn't Kick it Around."

On top of her mastery of musicology, Erin shows a lighthearted side with "La Petite Mort," which is a joyous two step about a widower who loses his wife mid-orgasm ("we both found heaven right then/you just chose not to come back").

To get the full low-down on Erin McKeown, check out www.erinmckeown.com.