Folk-rock veteran Erin McKeown released her new album Manifestra today, clearly hoping to make a splash with her feminization of the word manifesto, but falling short of a magnum opus.

The singer-songwriter is no newcomer to the music scene, releasing albums for well over a decade and touring alongside well-established musicians as Andrew Bird and Martin Sexton. With her new album, she attempts to create a name for herself within the folk-rock genre.

Manifestra intends to shake things up, gauging by the edgy, piercing look from McKeown on the album’s cover and the bold move to release the record on her own independent label TVP Records, ensuring the singer had full control over her release. However, the album as a whole seems to fall flat into redundant patterns and attaining an unfortunate sense of monotony.

The artist’s seventh album begins with “The Politician,” featuring a foot-stomping beat, power chords and layered, bluesy vocals. Overall, McKoewn has crafted a catchy opener that will leave listeners grooving to her melodic voice.
The sound slows down on “Proof,” the second track. Channeling the contemporary style of artists like Norah Jones, “Proof” would fit perfectly into any B-list rom-com’s climax, chock full of cliché lyrics like “Take a photo, there’s your proof / Solve a number, there’s your proof.”

“In God We Trust” picks up with a rock sound, keeping with the Americana theme indicated by the title through the incorporation of lyrics from “America the Beautiful.” Much of the positive aspects of the song are quickly forgotten once the lyric, “Did we really crash?” is repeated for nearly a minute of the song’s four-minute runtime.

An orchestral interlude followed by an electro-rock rhythm characterizes “Histories,” the fourth song on Manifestra. McKeown sings in time with the beat, blending her own vocals into the sounds behind her, which unfortunately serves to drown out her lyrics and turn the song into a forgettable one.

“The Jailer” recalls the earlier track “The Politician” with the singer returning to her bluesy vocals, adding swing and modern jazz elements to the song. Despite its similarity to the opener, the song stands as one of the more pleasing and engaging tracks.

On the eponymous track “Manifestra,” McKeown sings slightly above a whisper over a meandering rock rhythm, sounding more like a beat poet than a folk-rock singer. Despite the track sharing a name with her album, “Manifestra” should be quickly skipped and forgotten by listeners.

Gentle piano and mild synth supports the singer’s gentle voice on “Delight/Divide.” Though a nice departure from the rest of the album, the track seems outside McKeown’s comfort zone and has a forced nature to it.

The song “Instant Classic,” however, appears to be aptly named. Singing alongside Ryan Montbleau of The Ryan Montbleau Band, which does a yearly tour of the United States. The playful melody and the chemistry between the male and female vocals create an extremely well rounded track and perhaps the only true folk-rock song on the entire album.

“That’s Just What Happened” features a jazzy piano score and smoldering vocals from McKeown and is easily the most effective jazz and blues themed song on the album. The song is followed by the album’s closer, “Baghdad to the Bayou.” Co-written by MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, the song is politically charged and keeps with the theme of ferocity McKewon attempts to attain in the album.

Sadly, such aspirations never materialize and listeners are left with a collection of mismatched songs and a mix of genres that the singer has yet to truly master. Manifestra, though bold, should be ignored as a whole, but select tracks such as “The Politician,” “Instant Classic” and “The Jailer” are well worth a listen.