** 1/2 SARAH McLACHLAN, “Surfacing,” Arista

This summer’s female-driven Lilith Fair tour has been a boon to the sort of strong but lyrical singer-songwriters who fall between the extremes represented by, say, Courtney Love and the Spice Girls. As the woman who conceived Lilith Fair, McLachlan is surely in as good a position as anyone to benefit from all the publicity currently surrounding this estrogen extravaganza. But while McLachlan’s well-timed new album showcases her considerable strengths--a shimmering soprano voice and a knack for intelligent, emotionally forthright lyrics--it also suffers from a lack of compelling craftsmanship and textural daring.

In the past, McLachlan has proven a canny melodist, but her atmospheric arrangements have often teetered precariously on the middle-of-the-road. This time, many of the songs seem to drift aimlessly, and the typically ethereal, synth-driven production provided by her longtime cohort Pierre Marchand does little to revitalize them. There are a couple of fetching tunes, such as the catchy opening track and first single, “Building a Mystery,” and the graceful, piano-driven ballad “Do What You Have to Do.” In general, though, this album is about as exciting as your average frat party--albeit a lot classier.

*

Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent).

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* Excerpts from these albums and other recent releases are available on The Times’ World Wide Web site. Point your browser to: https://ukobiw.net/soundclips