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Those with a fear of bugs should avoid Share This Place, as it’s written entirely from the perspective of insects. Inspired by Jean-Henri Fabre, a turn-of-the-century entomologist known for his bug biographies, the album was commissioned by the Seattle International Children’s Festival as a companion to 12 short stop-motion animated films. The project sounds intriguing in theory, and at times it is. The critters of Mirah’s imagination have personality, even neuroses. They fall in love (a fly to his sweetheart: “Darling, you multiply in my eyes”) and fear death (“Such a short life!”). But despite these charming bits of anthropomorphic whimsy, the record focuses too much on the scientific. The lyrics to ‘Ecdysis’ sound like lines from a biology textbook: “Harden into chrysalis/I begin to pupate/ Hormones will cause all my tissues to rearrange.” Mirah’s honeyed voice has paired well with sweeping arrangements before, and the hurdy-gurdy accordion and strings here add an old-world beauty. But with each song crying, “Bugs are people too!,” it’s more a lesson in Buddhism than a Mirah record.
