Music releases: The Duhks

Fast Paced World

Sugar Hill Records

In the past year and a half, two of the five members of the Duhks have been replaced, among them the lead singer. One thing has remained, though: the group’s nose for music that pushes the boundaries of modern roots folk. The Canadian band’s fourth studio record, “Fast Paced World,” is a juicy mixture of components from across the musical spectrum melded into a quirky but cohesive whole.

New vocalist Sarah Dugas fills the role of the departed Jessee Havey in some places and raises the bar in others, hurling herself with soulful flair at the title track. Her take on the traditional “Mighty Storm” is a boisterous, vibrant piece of power preaching that leaps from an enthusiastic merger of gospel, country and clattering bits drawn from other musical wells.

The accessible hook of “You Don’t See It” is more mainstream than one might expect from an act that so prizes its own eclecticism, but a tapestry of sonic snippets keeps it lively. Departures are frequent on the fiddle-lined foot stomper “95 South” and the free-flowing instrumental “New Rigged Ship,” and while it’s easy to hear that the band’s dynamic has been fundamentally changed by its new lineup, it hasn’t come close to settling down.

— Thomas Kintner,

The Hartford Courant