With a heaping helping of mainstream “indie” artists to choose from today — not the few of which happen to be strong female singer-songwriter types, see Adele, Lykke Li, Regina Spektor — it would seem bedroom crooners have carved out a blueprint for successfully manouvering the mainstream, while sustaining the ultra smoky and “undiscovered” attitude that endeared them to crowds in the first place. And, when crowning the original queen of the artful pop genre, one name and one name only comes to mind: Feist.

The singer’s latest album, Metals — the follow up to Reminder — contains the usual mix of horns, strings, drums, guitars and sensitive yet catchy lyrics to satisfy fans’ craving for the slow burning melodies Feist has become know for, complemented by a new — ever so slight — twang to its undertone. For loyal listeners, there is nothing like the soft wails of Leslie Feist’s voice. Her music is one you could imagine playing in the background of your life, it’s no wonder so many of her hits find their way to the soundtracks of feature film and prime time television shows. Metals delivers the comfort of Feist’s tradition of melody, feeling and arrangement, marked by a noticeable return to her Canadian roots with the sound on the new album inching closer to folk, while still keeping a foot firmly in pop.

As a well seasoned veteran of the soft pop world, Feist has proven once again that it is possible to take indie into mainstream. Whether she continues on this road towards folk pop or perhaps onto something completely different with her next album, it is evident that Leslie Feist’s musical journey will continue to create a perfect alchemy of sound and emotion.