In sixth century Babylon, women buried inscribed bowls underneath their houses to ward off – or invoke – demons. Jewlia Eisenburg’s Charming Hostess rework these fragments into a kaleidoscopic musical midden: everything from Klezmer to Death Metal to Gospel to demented Country, often in combination.

“Malakha” sounds like a broken lullaby; “Seven Spirits” is an unsettling invocation; “Smamit” explores the decline of female birth magic over bubbling clarinet. A bit like the bowls themselves, some of the songs are beautiful; others are cracked.