The beauty of twentythree is that it is simple. Tristan Prettyman on her new CD explores the beauty of simplicity with a marked success.

The majority of the album features her slightly raspy but incredibly pleasing voice, guitar and basic band. The monotony that could be expected from an album like this never materializes.

The CD also features performances from Jason Mraz and G. Love.

The highlight of twentythree is the succinct and straightforward song writing. In a time when either grammarless drivel or overly complicated melodrama dominates the airwaves any album not like that is a find. But an album that can make uncomplicated sound so good is an absolute jewel.

“Simple As It Should Be,” track 11, is easily one of the best songs on the album. It shows the beauty and selflessness of love in a stage in your life when marriage is still a long way off.

She sings, “It’s as simple as it should be/Simple as it should be/And this love will build /Through flights and streets/In the end I predict/You’ll get the very best of me.” This song is full of hope for the future but with an understanding that a forever relationship is still somewhere around the corner.

Track 3, “The story,” looks at the end of a relationship. But it’s not the usual brokenhearted, devastated rant that is popular today. Instead it focuses on the moving and the learning aspect. Instead of someone cheating, it just didn’t work, which is fine. “So you write the title/And I’ll write the chapters/We can read a story of a love gone disaster/You write the moral/

And I’ll write the lesson/And we can read a love that kept us guessing.” This is the chorus and strikes right to the heart of the matter with startling clarity and lack of rancor. Sometimes relationships just don’t work out like planned.

Track five, “Shy That Way,” a duet with real-life boyfriend Jason Mraz, is a sweet look at the beginning of relationships with all their awkward pauses and slightly uncomfortable silences.

“There’s always too much talking/And I wanna just keep walking/But I keep staring baby/Keep staring/Though I may not know the right things to say/I’ll get it out to you one day.” Prettyman and Mraz’s voices blend together seamlessly. The song has a plucky melody that rolls along with an underlying excitement.

“Please,” track six, shows off her funky side. The song has a great beat makes you want to dance. It is different from the rest of the album in terms of melody but still seems to fit into the relaxed feeling of the album.

This album really could be played at any time, in the car, at a dinner or while doing homework.

But the relaxed melodies lend themselves perfectly to twilight on the beach or camping in the magazines.

Overall, this album reminds us that life at twentythree is, hopefully, not overly complicated and that is okay.

Prettyman is currently on tour with Ben Taylor. They will play an all-ages show at the Bluebird Theatre on March 3. Tickets are $10/$12 day of.