I really don't know what kind of relationship Mark Danielewski has with his sister Ann (a.k.a. Poe), but I doubt that the first thing the "House of Leaves" author had in mind when he set out to promote his first published work was an hour's worth of half-assed musical accompaniment.  Then again, I could be wrong.

"Haunted" is, at its core, a concept album.  Concept albums have, in the past, had a tendency towards being lofty, ill-refined, and well…pretentious.  Poe's 2000 companion to her brother's widely acclaimed novel shows little resistance to such labels.  "Haunted" is ambitious, however, and some of that enthusiasm does spill over into a small handful of memorable songs. 

Meant as both a vocal therapy session concerning her dead father (documentary filmmaker Tad Danielewski) and a sidekick to Johnny Truant's foray through the "House of Leaves," "Haunted" swirls with half-completed melodies and experimental electronica.  "Exploration B" and "Dear Johnny" in particular broadcast more as background music for a book-on-tape than a fully realized album. 

Poe best succeeds when she stays away from her family and focuses on what garnered her partial limelight in the past; quick, witty trip pop pieces like "Not a Virgin" and "Could've Gone Mad."  Here, her voice is clear with just enough gruff sass to pull her through and flesh out the seemingly unfinished songs.

Not all of the avant-garde attempts fall flat, though.  "5&1/2 Minute Hallway" is a good mix of synthesizers and strings creating the sense that Poe is performing a lullaby from the bottom of a well.

While certainly not as fully realized as her debut album, "Hello" (1995), Poe is not to be dismissed.  She has presented herself as a spring of talent that primarily requires refinement and direction by which to thrive.  Word to the wise though, Poe:  next time, stay out of your brother's toy box. 

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