Artist:  Melissa Etheridge
Title:  Fearless Love
Label:  Island

Whether it's the noticeably louder guitars or her viewpoints on gay rights, Melissa Etheridge music is packed with vibrato.

Known for her distinct, rootsy rock sound on songs like "Come to My Window" and "Bring Me Some Water," singer/songwriter Melissa Etheridge has never been afraid to rock—even when battling breast cancer and belting out Janis Joplin's legendary "Piece of My Heart" at the 2005 GRAMMY Awards.

But with 2007's The Awakening, Etheridge was uncharacteristically serene, something she even seemed to notice because with Fearless Love she says she was committed to seriously kicking things up a notch—sonically and otherwise.

And that's exactly what she does—and with gusto—on her tenth studio project. Not only are the electrifying riffs (which recall everyone from Bruce Springsteen to Dave Matthews to Jimmy Page) much bolder, but the subject matter is equally volatile.

Etheridge has openly proclaimed that she's a lesbian for the majority of her career, and her fight for gay rights is front and center on Fearless Love, whether she's talking about California's law that once allowed gay marriage but was eventually repealed when Proposition 8 was passed or telling the story of a married woman who is privately struggling with her sexuality: "She married in high school/Oldest was well upon her way/But that wild night, Chicago/It left a mark she can't erase."

Those already familiar with Etheridge's views on the subject certainly won't probably be surprised by her unabashed stance, but perhaps, it's the passion with which she delivers the message that feels new, especially when she sings the lyrics to "Miss California" with a particularly fiery fury: "Your self-destruction gives me sticks and stones/Your propositions make me feel so cold/When the hand that's trying to hold me down is the one that I'm trying to hold."

In a rare personal moment, a departure from Etheridge's usual songwriting approach, she praises the mother of her two children, Tammy Lynn Michaels. And while the song provides a nice break from the angrier feel of the rest of the album, it's particularly awkward listening to, considering the couple recently split up.

No matter where your views lie on the same-sex debate, however, it's still impossible to deny that Etheridge has talent. And that fight she brings to her music shines brightest when she's tackling more universal truths in the title track or the world-weary strains of "Drag Me Away" when she wages war against breast cancer by singing "It's going to take more than that to get rid of me…It's going to take more than that to make me fade."

When someone belts out a song the way Etheridge does, you can't help but believe it, and in my opinion, that's inevitably the mark of a great song and a compelling artist.

 
**This review first published on May 18, 2010.