The Crying Light is the new album from Antony & the Johnsons and the long-awaited follow-up to their Mercury Prize winning album I Am a Bird Now.

As a vocalist, Antony Hegarty is in a league of his own.  There are few if any singers alive that can match the weirdness of his falsetto warble.  That's probably why he's been a favorite backing vocalist for Lou Reed.

Of course those distinctive vocals run deeply throughout The Crying Light.  The genius of Hegarty is in making those vocals melt into the rest of the music, becoming an integral part of the sound (as on the deconstructive "One Dove").  That takes what could be a distraction, or even worse, and makes it one of the most charming and beautiful features of the music.

Hegarty verges on unleashing his voice on "Kiss My Name".  The song becomes a highwire act, tense for the listener as Hegarty teases a full-blown wail that never quite materializes.