There is a new Erin McKeown record and it is right there with her best work. The record was produced by Steve Berlin of Los Lobos fame, and it has a cohesive, and quite rocking, sound. Most of the songs deal with relationships, and it doesn't sound like those relationships are going particularly well. Of course this topic has resonated in many great records, so this one continues the long tradition of the break-up record.
Cupido Stupido kicks things off in fast, punky style. Litany For A Minor Character has a nice riff and wordy lyric. Melancholy rocker On/Off Heart follows with a hooky chorus and a fine classic rock lead guitar break. Switch Shadows is an airy ballad, while Details Of The Crime has a slinky, "mysterious" guitar part. Go Along/Get Along returns to the fun pop-punk vibe, and details a relationship style just built for animosity. Business Of Show has a guitar figure that sounds like Andy Summers of the Police, and it rocks.
The second half is just as good. My Own Baby Now is a bluesy pop of a breakup song (I'll be my own baby now) with a sax break from Steve Berlin. What happens when a girl breaks up with a girl to date a guy inspires the vitriol of Is/He Does/He, a hook filled nasty pop-punk tune that has one of several rather graphic lyrics on the record. The title track is a another solid rocker followed by Landing Spot, an atmospheric piece with spoken word lyrics and great instrumentation. Today/Sex is another fast spiky rocker with solid drive and again with the sex-filled lyric (no innuendo here). The mid-tempo rock of Little Miss Mister with spare verses and big chorus ends the record as strong as it began.
Special merit goes to the band. Trent Baarspul (guitar), Damian Erskine (bass), Reinhardt Melz (drums), and Erik Duetsch (keyboards) all have their shining moments, and Melz is especially effective at pushing the rhythms forward. Erin's guitar and Berlin's sax fatten it all up nicely. Ms. McKeown is a fabulous singer that just seems to get better, and her songwriting continues to to produce great material. This one joins We Will Become Like Birds 2005, Hundreds of Lions 2009, and MANIFESTRA 2013 as one of her finest.
No comments:
Post a Comment