The Living Side, Meg Hutchinson’s moody, introspective, and frequently beautiful eighth album, is such an intimate affair that you may feel as if you’re eavesdropping when you listen in. Imagine a somewhat less commercial Norah Jones with a more understated production—or maybe a female Nick Drake. The music is as powerful as it is gentle, and the contemplative lyrics—mostly personal, but some (if you listen carefully) about such things as bank bailouts and global warming—stay with you. As Hutchison writes on her website, “Every day I’m struck by something that leaves me speechless. Usually, it’s something very simple, very ordinary…What are the words that have never been used before to describe something we all know? That’s what I’m after.” Much more often than not, that’s also what she delivers. Don’t miss this one.