Hampshire, England's Laura Marling is all of 20 years old. Which, yes, is super young. But, like a certain Dentonite who exists in a similar realm, Marling's music sounds well beyond its writer's age. Which, unless you're Justin Bieber, you kind of have to do when you put out your debut album at age 17, as she did with her 2007 release, Alas, I Cannot Swim. Fast forward three years, and Marling's just released her sophomore effort, I Speak Because I Can, for Virgin Records. Like her first, it bridges the gap between modern-day, gloomy and moody alternative folk and some classic, more traditional folk elements.
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