Joan Osborne has one of those voices, the kind that only come around every once in a while. From the beginning, even with her massive hit “One of Us,” she has aimed for a lifetime career in music à la Tom Waits, and her albums have reflected this aesthetic. Love and Hate continues that trajectory. As a song cycle built around the two extremes of relationships, the album promises to cover complicated emotional terrain — and by and large, it does. It’s uneven in places, with a couple of songs never fully taking off, but Osborne’s voice keeps the listener invested throughout and on standout tracks including the pointed “Kitten’s Got Claws” and the rocking pulse of “Thirsty for My Tears.”
