The grandeur of the natural world and the mysteries of human desire dominate Denali, Emma Hill’s sixth and best-realized album. The singer/songwriter’s rustic, whisky-dipped vocals—suggestive at times of Gillian Welch and Sera Cahoone—give these tunes the feel of Western ballads crossed with Celtic laments. In tandem with guitarist Bryan Daste, Hill moves from jaunty country tunes (“Hard Love”) to nuanced character sketches (“Lioness”) and bruised survivor’s anthems (“Rooted in Fear”). Denali’s title track—an ode to the rugged majesty of Hill’s native Alaska—is the centerpiece of this brooding but warm-hearted song collection.