Nothing Is Free is a woodsy and introspective album. The recording brings an immediacy to the music that conjures up a Sunday evening spent playing instruments and singing songs on the back porch of the cabin.
You know, one of those days where everything seems all Emily Carr... and, although the city seems miles away for the moment, it still looms in the corner of your mind, nodding and smirking and saying, "you'll be back." Carolyn knows... not even a carefree getaway to the back woods is free, it comes with the price of eventually having to leave.
Fortunately for the listener, her introspection finds many other things too, not the least of which is a (sometimes dark) sense of humour and a willingness to throw caution under the truck to make way for all the fun humanly possible. While some people are content to rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic, Carolyn Mark would be pleasantly surprised to find an open bar, and would treat us all to one last rollicking sing-a-long before the icy waters closed over our heads.
Artwork by Kelly Haigh.
Carolyn Mark has a smart mouth. - Pitchfork
[W]hile Carolyn Mark might be the thinking person’s folk singer, she never forgets about the art of writing a memorable song, and singing a song memorably, either. - popmatters