As one third of the alt.country trio Be Good Tanyas, Trish Klein has made bluegrass banjo tolerable to twenty-somethings. But with her own band, Po' Girl, Klein has got the blues, embracing the heat, dust and sexuality of New Orleans soul.

Used to being surrounded by unique voices, here Klein collaborates with singer and clarinet player Allison Russell, whose spirited vocals wrap around tales of urban sadness and personal decay without self-pity.

"You were sad and ashamed/ I was drinking Scotch and lemonade," Russell sings in Backstairs Down, Klein adding floating, conspiratorial harmonies. Gone in Pawn turns a messy misfortune into a celebration of freedom.

Though Klein's deceptively simple musicianship shines brighter than ever, Russell's vocals sometimes turn too innocent for the beaten-down lyricism. But she comes into her own on What Sad Old Song, slurring through brutal, honest heartbreak in a modern-day spiritual.