It has been over four hundred
albums and almost four years since I last rolled an album by this artist – so long
that when I did my last review of her, this next album wasn’t even out yet.
Disc 615 is…. Charmer
Artist: Aimee
Mann
Year of Release: 2012
What’s up with the Cover? Look deep into my
eyes – are you getting sleepy…?
This
cover creeps Sheila out. It is one of those cognitive illusions that is two
different things depending on how you look at it. In both cases it is a mesmerist
of some kind, but one has a beard and one does not. I like this cover and enjoy
the mental exercise of trying to actively see both faces at once.
How I Came To Know It: Both Sheila and I are big Aimee Mann fans, since
Sheila first discovered her. I bought her “Charmer” as a gift when it came out
(for birthday or Christmas). My usual rule is to only buy Sheila music as a
gift that I wouldn’t buy for myself. This ensures I’m not just getting an album
I’d buy anyway. In this case I knew she would want it just as badly as I did,
so I bent the rule.
How It Stacks Up: We have seven Aimee Mann albums, which is all of
them except her Christmas album “Drifter in the Snow” (we don’t do Christmas
albums). Of the seven, I’d put “Charmer” in a statistical dead heat at fourth with
“Fuck Smilers” (reviewed back at Disc 171). If I had to pick, I’d say “Charmer”
edges it out ever so slightly.
Rating: 3 stars but close to 4
“Charmer” is an example of pop
music done right. This didn’t surprise me; Aimee Mann consistently demonstrates
what pop music is capable of in skilled hands – lively, catchy music with clever
melodies and insightful lyrics.
Not all pop is so fortunate. Earlier
this month Avril Lavigne released the truly terrible “Hello, Kitty” for example. I’d like to think it is because she
married that Nickelback guy (Nickelback being the source of many of the world’s
worst audio crimes) but the truth is pop music has gotten progressively more
awful all on its own – slick production hiding weak hooks, autotuned voices and
choppy image-centric video packaging. Greasy, crappy rock bands like Nickelback
have nothing to do with it.
Fortunately, Aimee Mann is a light
in the dark and vacuous world of pop music, showing that you can still make
meaningful music that is also catchy and enjoyable.
Style-wise, “Charmer” maintains
some of the ambient sound and groove that was present on 2008’s “Fuck Smilers”
but she also returns to some of the simpler production that was present on her
masterpiece, “The Forgotten Arm.” While not as good as “The Forgotten Arm” (few albums are), “Charmer” pleasantly reminded me of it in terms of song
construction and approach.
It also returns to the sad
relationship themes from “Forgotten Arm” including “Labrador” which compares the faithfulness of a dog to the whims of
a love interest (or a friend, it is always unclear if Mann is singing from
experience, or as a different character). “Labrador”
is the best song on the record, and a reminder that when you have someone’s
unconditional love, you shouldn’t abuse it.
Conversely, “Crazytown” is a reminder that sometimes we are the architects of
our our own misfortune, when we should know better:
“And for who?
A girl who lives in Crazytown
Where craziness gets handed down
Who? Whoever’s gonna volunteer
Will only end up living here.”
Well, hopefully the rent was cheap
and the sex good. Bad relationships abound on “Charmer,” artfully depicted,
including the aforementioned songs plus a fine duet called “Living a Lie” featuring James Mercer
(Shins, Broken Bells).
Some applause is also in order for
Mann’s videos for the album, which are both awesome. Since the demise of the
music video channel, videos don’t get the same attention they once did, but
Mann always puts care and attention into hers. Her offerings off of “Charmer”
include the title track, which depicts Mann purchasing a lifelike replica of
herself (played by actress Laura Linney) to go on tour for her. Click here to see the resulting hijinks.
She also does a video for “Labrador” where she recreates, shot for
shot, the video she did for the ‘Til Tuesday hit “Voices Carry.” That video was ridiculous in the day, and seeing it
redone roughly thirty years later is even more hilarious.
Both videos show Mann’s exceptional
talent for poking fun at herself. The first video mocks her well-known dislike
for touring and her second has a laugh reminding us that as far as many people
are concerned, her career ended in 1985.
The real joke is on the people
that think that, of course, because Mann’s solo career continues to be both
inspiring and chock full of great records, as “Charmer” ably demonstrates.
Best tracks: Charmer,
Disappeared, Labrador, Crazy Town, Living a Lie, Barfly
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