CD Odyssey Disc 1574: Barton Carroll

For those who are new (or may have forgotten), for the past six years or so I’ve been alternating between a “new to me” album (rule # 5) and a random album “from the stacks”.  The “new to me” section is also random, as I select it from the backlog of albums that I haven’t put away yet. I never put an album away until it gets a minimum of three listens, with two of those listens happening consecutively. At any give time there are between 60 and 100 albums waiting for this event.

My first two albums by this next artist came out of this “new” experience back in 2017, but the last one made it into the stacks where it happily lurked until now. Don’t feel bad for it though, I gave it more than a few listens over the past five years. I was glad to give it yet another before writing this review.

Disc 1574 is…. Together You and I

Artist: Barton Carroll

Year of Release: 2010

What’s up with the Cover?  Barton is pictured in the upper right. I don’t know who that woman is in the lower left (my guess is guest vocalist Anna-Lisa Notter, who is co-lead singer on a couple of the tunes).

There are two nifty features of this album cover. The first is that Barton Carroll signed it for me! I ordered it direct through his website. The second is that the case is made out of brown construction paper and folded up into a flat box with a tab to open it, rather than the usual centre-fold system. How do I like it? It is…OK.

How I Came To Know It: I read about a different one of Carroll’s albums (“Avery County, I Am Bound To You” reviewed at Disc 1073) on a list of obscure folk albums to check out. This led me to the rest of his discography, and here we are.

How It Stacks Up: I have three Barton Carroll albums. “Together You and I” comes in at #2. Here’s the full list

1. Avery County, I Am Bound To You: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 1073)
2. Together You and I: 3 stars (reviewed right here)
3. Love & War: 3 stars (reviewed at Disc 1058)

 Ratings: 3 stars, but almost 4

Barton Carroll is one of folk music’s best kept secrets, and that’s a damned shame. As near as I can tell he hasn’t made an album since 2013, and the internet was singularly unhelpful in telling me why. And I searched sites for ten minutes; an eternity when it comes to web searches.

The worst part is that Carroll was just getting better. “Together You and I” is his second last record and demonstrates his songwriting continuing to grow and mature as he mixes in other influences, converting each of them into his stripped-down folk arrangements, and quavering, confessional vocal style.

Carroll is at his best when he is telling stories, and “Together You and I” features some great ones. Often understated, Carroll’s narratives are small in scope, but rich in emotion and character. The best song on the record (and quite possibly the greatest song Carroll ever recorded) is “Shadowman”. It is a tale of sibling rivalry that walks us through the life of two brothers, one perpetually in the shadow of the other, seething with a combination of envy and admiration.

“Shadowman” is one of those songs that is so powerful that I find it hard to listen to it – even in the background – while writing. I just want to stop typing and listen every time. The opening stanza sets the stage:

“I laid in the schoolyard with my face in the sand
There were bruises on my neck from an angry bully's hand
But when you came out to meet him, he was running like a deer
And you said, "Your brother's here."
And you'd think I'd be happy you were looking out for me
But how great you were and small I was, was all that I could see
And a younger brother's envy bored its way into my heart
And it was just a start”

From here it gets darker, as the elder brother is a hero in war, marries the woman his younger brother loves. The tale ends in both tragedy and epiphany. I’d tell you about it, but I encourage you to instead go listen.

…OK, then. Back and recovered, are we? Well, there are plenty more where that came from. “The Poor Boy Can’t Dance” is an up-tempo moment that flutters just like the heart of a boy asking a girl he fancies to dance for the first time.

And less innocent, but no less full of love, the title track, which is about a couple’s enduring love as he serves time, and she waits patiently for him to get out of the joint and go dig up his buried loot and so they can run off together and “slide off the edge of the world”. The song is a duet with the aforementioned Anna-Lisa Notter, who is equal parts sweetness and tough.

Carroll branches out from this narrative style in places, embracing some basic blues riffs and even a cover of a Sound of Music number with “Something Good.” Listening to the latter I knew I didn’t like it, but couldn’t place why. Once I realized it was from “Sound of Music” it all fell into place. Blech.

When Carroll does branch out stylistically, he never abandons his storytelling nature, singing in a light and gentle way that will not blow down any doors, but suits the songs well. If you want vocal gymnastics this won’t be for you, but if you’re interested in what a singer has to say as much as how well they sing it, you will find yourself pleasantly drawn into these tales.

Best tracks: The Poor Boy Can’t Dance, Shadowman, Let’s Get On With the Illusion, Together You and I

CD Odyssey Disc 1573: Grace Cummings

Welcome back to the CD Odyssey! I’ve taken a couple short walks down by the water this week, (I work near an inlet) listening to music and soaking up some sun. It has been very therapeutic, not least because this next album was keeping me company.

Disc 1573 is…. Storm Queen

Artist: Grace Cummings

Year of Release: 2022

What’s up with the Cover?  The stark monochromatic Grace Cummings balances a parrot full of riotous colour. Like Cummings music this cover is both beautiful and slightly awkward.

How I Came To Know It: The same old boring story. I read a review, then I listened, and then I asked my local record store to order it in. Which they did.

How It Stacks Up: I have two Grace Cummings albums. Both are amazing and it is very hard to pick between them. I’ll put “Storm Queen” slightly out in front…for now.

Ratings: 5 stars

Listening to Grace Cummings sing is an experience that is very hard to quantify. Just to say it is unique would be a disservice. It is more like a spiritual revelation. This is a record that will stop a conversation. That will cause you to look up from whatever you are doing and catching the attention of someone else within audio range, lock eyes as you both silently express, “can you believe we are hearing this?”

Listening to Grace Cummings is like being transfixed by the keening of a ghost as she warbles her fell and beautiful secrets to you from the underworld. It will create shivers up your spine, even as you feel its uncanny wisdom flood your mind.

After multiple listens to her throaty warble, I just liked it more and more. There was a small part of me that realized this might be one step too strange for some people. The intense way she modulates back and forth from head to chest voice, like a whistle in a cavern, might not sit well with some. I pity those folks though, because while Cummings vocal style requires full attention for best effect, it is hard to not want to give it to her.

So what kind of music is this? Well…folk, if I had to choose. Compositionally, she is a lot like Bob Dylan crossed with Leonard Cohen. The lyrics are rich with imagery and pathos, intensely personal and yet so poetic that it feels more like an abstract truth than a diary. I suspect it is both.

“Storm Queen” is much more ornately arranged than her first record, “Refuge Cove”. Like that record, the songs are held down principally by a guitar, strummed intensely, because to not strum intensely would be to have those vocals wash you out to sea. However, she works in a whole lot of other flourishes as well, with strings of various kinds and even a theremin. It is a lot, and while I love the stark beauty of “Refuge Cove” all that extra support just makes this record sigh a bit deeper.

Lyrically, Cummings knows how to string together evocative language that is further supercharged in the delivery. The album’s best example is the horrifically stark break up song, “Up in Flames”. My favourite stanza is the second:

“It's winter now, and I feel like Robert Frost
If only there was a birch tree to hang upon
If only I was a poem, sitting silently in the rain
And you were a dream, just swimming in its brain
But Notre Dame burns today, its beauty is up in flame”

That first line will freeze you with its cold despondency, and when Notre Dame burns at the end you are reminded of Frost’s poem about how the world will end. Ice or fire, or in the case of a Grace Cummings break up song…both. And if it feels a bit overwrought, well the whole record feels that way, but with her delivery you can be assured that overwrought ends up being just the right amount of wrought.

While you don’t need a visual for this stuff to hit you, I strongly recommend the video for “Heaven”. For maximum impact, make this full screen. As you watch this video, you will look into Grace’s eyes. You will be thrilled, invigorated, and made to feel slightly uncomfortable, all in a good way. At some point in your journey you will realize that you are not looking at Grace Cummings at all. She is looking at you!

As if I didn’t love her enough already, on the title track Cummings even invokes Townes Van Zandt:

“Townes Van Zandt
Took a hold of my hand
So I wouldn't feel alone
I just can't feel alone

It is a song for anyone who has ever taken solace in artistic creation, be it someone else’s or your own. This song is about every great turn of phrase that ever reached out and gave you comfort, when mere human touch wasn’t going to get it done.

Like that experience, Grace Cummings is beyond human. This record changes me when I listen to it, twisting and turning my soul like a tree growing in the wind, and making me stronger in the process.

Best tracks: All the songs, but I particularly like: Heaven, Up in Flames, Freak, Raglan, This Day in May, Storm Queen

CD Odyssey Disc 1572: Torres

In looking up my last Torres review I discovered a pretty crazy set of coincidences. That review was written August 20, 2021 and in the introduction I indicated the following:

• I had taken the day off.
• My day had begun with a trip to the dentist
• I was looking forward to eating some Mexican food for lunch.

Literally all these things are happening today as well. The only difference is I’m going to have Mexican food for dinner, and it is going to be from a different restaurant (my city is festooned with great Mexican food joints).

I sincerely hope this strange coincidence will mess with the AI algorithm and create some connection between Torres, dentistry, and a good burrito.

Disc 1572 is…. Sprinter

Artist: Torres

Year of Release: 2015

What’s up with the Cover? This cover played havoc with my camera lens (yes, I take a picture of my album covers). It kept struggling to focus on both Torres’ face and also the purple concentric circles. The effect looks like half alternative night club, half “I just got out of the shower” which is a good visual for what you can expect from the music.

How I Came To Know It: I read a review when it came out and was intrigued. Intrigue led to listening…listening led to liking…and liking led to purchasing. And here we are.

How It Stacks Up: I have four Torres albums. I like them all so much it feels like they are all crowding around for first place. Such is the case with “Sprinter” which displaces 2021’s “Thirstier” to take over second spot.

Ratings: 4 stars

Torres approaches her art from a place that is raw and vulnerable to the point of feeling uncomfortable. However, like any good art it converts that discomfort to something beautiful and magnetic, drawing you in past the dissonance and into deeper truths.

The opening track, “Strange Hellos” is a good example, pulling elements of stark guitar plucks, and a flat delivery of harsh truths spoken in a way that leaves you feeling numb from the first few bars you hear:

“Heather I'm sorry that your mother
Diseased in the brain
Cannot recall your name
Heather I dreamt that I forgave
But that only comes in waves
I hate you all the same”

Yikes. This opening and the way it is delivered speaks of an almost off-handed cruelty. As the song moves into the B section, it launches into a grunge-like guitar attack as all the fury underlying that opening gets unleashed, like a ruptured pinata full of smokes and discarded needles (thanks to Casey for that image – a darling I could not kill…).

OK, back to the review. The record’s dangerous energy continues with “New Skin,” as Mackenzie Scott (aka Torres) adds a fell and foreboding vibrato to her delivery. Scott’s vocals are sneaky good, rich and resonant in her lower register and filling the room.

These songs all have an element of introvert explosion. If the quietest and most sensitive among us could bring themselves to shout out, I imagine it would sound like this, tremulous but powerful and possessed of a deep inner core of strength.

The record has great dynamic range to it, as the alt-rock vibes of “Strange Hellos” and “New Skin” give way to the ambient experimentation of “Son, You Are No Island” and the undulating indie pop flow of “A Proper Polish Welcome.” The latter has the most amazing non-hook hook I’ve heard, just dropping the melody down as it delivers the title in a half-chorus/half-refrain.

All of the songs have the same high degree of thoughtfulness to musical structure, instrumentation, and lyrics, artfully intertwining all three into a single piece of art. Nothing seems done by accident, but despite the very deliberate choices the album feels organic and natural. Scott just knows how to tap into the Music of the Spheres and convert it to something mortals can understand without losing any of the magic.

The album’s “single” is the title track, “Sprinter”, which captures all these elements, and serves as an up-tempo pivot in the centre of the record. The song is one half guitar riff, capturing the energy of the sprint and the other half a mournful croon that stands in for the comforting isolation of the long-distance runner. The two elements of the song play off against one another, and all the while Torres makes a song that is about so much more than running.

Listening to this record you get the impression that Torres is an old soul. She has a heaviness to her music, delicately attached to youthful uncertainty. Or as she sings in “New Skin”:

“I am a tired woman
In January I will just be 23”

“Sprinter” is a classic piece of art, and while I add a lot of new music to my collection every year, I still consistently pull this one off the shelf for repeat listens. I was glad to roll it, and sad to be moving on.

Best tracks: Strange Hellos, New Skin, A Proper Polish Welcome, Sprinter, The Exchange

CD Odyssey Disc 1571: The Beaches

I’m back from an event-packed weekend, ready to provide you a music review AND a concert review. First the album, and then scroll down for the corresponding concert.

Disc 1571 is…. Future Lovers EP (as part of the “Sisters Not Twins” re-release)

Artist: The Beaches

Year of Release: 2021

What’s up with the Cover? The band, resplendent in colour. This is the second record in a row where the band embraces the old school “four of us stand in a line” cover and I’m liking it. I hope they keep it up. It isn’t a great T-shirt, though. More on that later.

How I Came To Know It: Somehow this album eluded me as an EP. I caught up to it by accident when it was re-released as the “Sisters Not Twins [the Professional Lovers Album]”. This was basically the 2021 Future Lovers EP paired with the 2019 EP, “The Professional”. I never did see “Future Lovers” on its own, but it all worked out in the end.

How It Stacks Up: I have five Beaches albums, consisting of four EPs and one LP. Or, if you count “Sisters Not Twins” as a full LP, the count is three and two.

This double count is because “Sisters Not Twins” combines the band’s previous two EPs. And it doesn’t just put them both on one disc, it mixes the tracks up in a whole new order. In this way it is all its own record and should probably be reviewed as such.

However, that ship sailed, because I reviewed “the Professional” EP back in February 2020 (Disc 1340).  Rather than talk about all those songs all over again, let’s just focus on what’s new to me, and that’s the five tracks from “Future Lovers”.

Still with me? OK, let’s rank it pretending it is just the EP, meaning I have four EPs and one LP. Of the four EPs, I rank “Future Lovers” at #4. Hey, something had to be last…

Ratings: 3 stars

“Future Lovers” has the classic Beaches sound: anthem-inspiring tunes with a little thump and a lot of jump. As Tom Haverford would say, these gals know how to write a quality banger.

The best of the bunch is “Bad Behaviour” which has fuzzed out guitar sound mixed with a jaunty vocal delivery by Jordan Miller:

“Said shе was tired
Of stayin' up getting wired
Now she lives in Berlin
With Steampunk Italians”

It isn’t a song about a lot of deep thought, mostly about living the fast life, but none of that matters. Like any good pop song it is barely over three minutes long, ends early, and leaves you wanting more.

I also dig “Blow Up” which is that antsy feeling of being at one club and wanting to go to another one hoping it will be better. I think. I understand this feeling, but in my clubbing days I was much more likely to want to nest in the first reasonable club I came upon. Nothing worse than feeling your sweat cool off and your beer buzz fade on a frosty Autumn evening, waiting in some line you could have avoided simply by staying at the club you were already at. But I digress…

While the album is mostly “bangers” or at least songs aspiring to the title, there are some sweet spots, notably “You Don’t Owe Me Anything” which features Jordan’s sweet, slightly sad vocals as she sings about a no-strings attached one night stand. The song rambles a little, with Jordan doing a bit of talking over the tune. Ordinarily this would annoy me (sing it!) but here she reminded me favourably of the Shangri-Las with her mix of tough and tender.

The record overall is solid, but it suffers a bit by comparison with their previous release. And it doesn’t help that my copy is mixed in with the five songs from “The Professional”. While good, with the exception of “Bad Behaviour” the tunes on “Future Lovers” just aren’t quite at the same level.

Fortunately, it is still a Beaches record, and even their weakest EP is still a lot of fun.

Best tracks: Bad Behaviour, Blow Up

The Concert: July 11, 2022 at the Philips Brewery Backyarder, Victoria

Yes, you read that correctly! Concerts have returned, and this was the return of the Backyarder, which after a couple years of COVID cancellations came back with a vengeance in 2022, with three separate weekends of music.

This past weekend was the second of the three, which was called “Tilt” for reasons that I did not care enough to investigate. I was just happy to have a show to go see, and even happier that my lovely wife Sheila (who usually hates any kind of outdoor festival) decided to give it a chance as well.

Tilt had five bands but since Sheila and I were only interested in the last two on the ticket we went for dinner first, and showed up late, just in time to catch the ‘opener’…

Before that started though, there was plenty of time for people watching in the late afternoon summer sun. Festival crowds are interesting, with a lot of people wearing boring but comfortable athleisure, peppered with every tenth person dressed up either nice, weird, or nice and weird.

While other middle-aged folks were there, we were decidedly in the minority and the vast majority were well under 35. Everyone was well behaved and the sheer variety in the crowd made for some quality people watching.

But enough about the people – here are the two bands we saw. Also, since we like to patronize the merch table, I’ve also provided a “merch rating” which I think a fine feature for these live show reviews, and something I may keep doing down the road.

Snotty Nose Rez Kids

First up were the Snotty Nose Rez Kids, which is a hip hop band from the Haisla Nation, located in Northwest BC. I’ve been a fan for a few years now, and if you want to know more about the band read my reviews at Disc 1377 and Disc 1526.

As for the live show, I was nervous. When I see hip hop live it sometimes feels like the bass overpowers any chance to hear the lyrics and you just get a bunch of close-mic muffling.

Not so the Rez Kids. They are old school in approach and keeping the arrangements simple also lets you hear what’s going on very well. They had a great energy and played a set full of my favourites. Their banter was a bit by the numbers, but it was full of energy (at one point just getting the crowd to chant the “Energy! Energy! Energy!” which seemed a bit on point.

Merch rating: A. SNRK had at least five different concert t shirts and they were all awesome. This included a play on Iron Maiden album covers, which featured hip hop versions of Eddie. Sheila got one of those. I went with a cool looking ghost/shipwreck design. I’m a sucker for a nautical theme.

Beaches

This is the third time I’d seen the Beaches. There’s a reason I’ve been that many times, and why I would go again tomorrow; the Beaches are great live. This time around I could really only see the top third of them from my vantage point, but that was still enough to know they still had the magic.

The Beaches are pure rock energy. This time around they were all dressed in bright colours, so even at a distance it was easy to pick up all their high kicks, hair twirls and general derring-do.

Armed with even more crowd-pleasing songs from their latest album (see above for details), they were once again on top of their game. The Beaches look young but they’ve been making music for a good ten years now, and it shows. They play as a true band, feeding off each other with an easy vibe that felt even more rollicking in front of so many drunk and stoned revelers.

They divided their show up into two equal halves that fully rocked out, with a caesura of three slow bummer songs that felt like they were there so you could grab a beer and your breath before the second half of the set kicked off. I thought the slow tunes were lost a bit in the bigger venue, but the overall effect of creating some layers to the performance worked well.

There were a couple of minor issues with the show. First, the sound was a bit over-amped to start causing the guitars to fuzz out in a not-good way, but by about song three or four, the mix was sorted out. I’ll always forgive a bit of off-sound early in a show, as long as it gets fixed, and here it did.

The Beaches do need to work on their banter. While they clearly like each other, they have a tendency to talk over each other in a way that prevents you hearing any of them very well. Also, when I could hear them, they tended to ramble. I know its artificial to do a prepared schtick every night, but they might want to have roughly blocked out a bit of the dialogue in advance.

These are both minor quibbles, however. The Beaches are one of my favourite bands to see live, and I’ve seen a few. They are all gifted musicians who love to perform, and it shows.

Merch Rating: Average. The Beaches had a cool new font and a funky yellow shirt, but it also had cutouts of all their heads. Band shirts should be artsy, not just a picture of the band.

CD Odyssey Disc 1570: Tyr

For the second time in three albums I was treated to some Viking metal. I guess if you buy a lot of one kind of music in a short span of time, it is likely to show up on your playlist a fair bit.

Disc 1570 is…. The Lay of Thrym

Artist: Tyr

Year of Release: 2011

What’s up with the Cover? I believe this is a depiction of the end of the titular lay of Thrym. Thrym as a giant who stole Thor’s hammer and planned to ransom it back in return for Freya’s hand in marriage. Thor went and, after asking Thyrm politely, got the hammer back.

Just kidding, Thor dressed up as Freya to get into the wedding and then straight up murdered not only Thrym (lying dead in the foreground here), but also his older sister and all his kin (not pictured). The moral of this myth is self-evident: don’t steal another man’s hammer.

The two goats in the foreground also belong to Thor – they are called Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr and in Norse myth they pull Thor’s chariot. It looks like Thor's post-murderous exultation has them wanting to bolt, but if you happen to find them later, return them immediately. Thor is fucking serious about defending his personal property. Not the guy you want to borrow a lawn mower (or goat) from, and not return it on time. 

How I Came To Know It: Originally by way of my buddy Nick, but in the case of this record it was me digging through the band’s catalogue.

How It Stacks Up: I have three Tyr albums so far. I’m on the lookout for a fourth (2013’s Valkyrja). Of the three I have, I rank “The Lay of Thrym” at #3. Sorry, Thrym: someone has to be last.

Ratings: 3 stars

For those who don’t know them, Tyr is a metal band from the Faroe Islands that mix heavy metal with flavours of Norse mythology with traditional Viking chants that have been metalized. So a little of Column A, and a little of Column B, where A and B tend to..er…intermingle.

“The Lay of Thrym” has the same qualities that made me enjoy previous albums “Ragnarok” (2006) and “Land” (2008). The heavy thump of Kari Streymoy’s drum remains the best part of the band, as he thuds his way through each tune with a deliberate power that evokes memories of Black Sabbath’s Bill Ward. Streymoy shines brightest on “Evening Star”, the album’s ballad, or what passes for a ballad on a modern metal album like this. He gets to show off both a slow thud and a ferocious speed in the same tune, giving the song the solemn gravity of a funeral march and the rousing anthem of a war march all in a single tune. Streymoy is the jarl of this band, and the others are all rowing to his beat.

Singer Heri Joensen has a big traditional metal vocal that soars and delivers the lyrics with conviction. This isn’t easy, as some of the lines on these songs are awkward or create cramped phrasing as they try to fit too many syllables into each bar. Sometimes it works, as in the breakneck “Hall of Freedom” whereas other times it feels awkward, as what makes Streymoy’s drumming so interesting can make the lyrics feel like square pegs being pushed into round holes. Also lines like “Nine worlds of lore/This is the place we keep the weapon’s of war” don’t sound less hokey despite Joensen’s heartfelt efforts to make them cool.

The guitar work on the record is solid, although the solos let me down in places, resorting to a “look how fast I can play” noodle fest. I believe great guitar solos are forged from an alternate exploration of the melody, both a part of and separate from the song at the same time. Hoping a whole lot of notes and technical precision can replace this artistry rarely succeeds.  

This being Tyr, they work in a solid bit of traditional Scandinavian chants with both “Konning Hans” (Danish) and “Ellindur Bondi A Jadri” (Faroese). I liked similar songs on earlier records slightly more, but both of these are good. As ever they ‘metalize’ the songs in a delightful way that lends itself equally to pulling on the oar of a Viking longship and throwing your hair around in a mosh pit. I wonder if Vikings back in the day moshed when these songs got busted out in the longhouse? I like to think they did.

Viking metal bands tend to have a reputation for singing about Viking history and mythology to the exclusion of pretty much everything else. You’d expect a record called “The Lay of Thrym” to do just this, but I was surprised to see Tyr mixing mythology with modern social commentary. The title track seems to explore the concept of corrupt governance where I admit I was hoping for a lot more descriptors of Thor wreaking havoc at Thrym’s wedding feast. That said, all was forgiven when I heard the over-the-top line, “Hammer home to any despot’s dome.” Hammer to the dome, yo!

This record isn’t Tyr’s best, but if you already have “Land” and “Ragnarok” and want to branch out a bit farther, it is a solid entry in their catalogue and worth exploring.

Best tracks: Flame of the Free, Hall of Freedom, Evening Star, The Lay of Thrym

CD Odyssey Disc 1569: Neko Case

Welcome back to the Odyssey – let’s get to the music!

Disc 1569 is…. Fox Confessor Brings the Flood

Artist: Neko Case

Year of Release: 2006

What’s up with the Cover? A deer lady (yes, that kind of deer – look at her legs) is having a stern talk with a pack of foxes. I suspect it relates to the head of her friend she’s cradling in one arm.

The foxes’ expressions suggest it won’t be difficult to wrangle a confession out of them. If anything the one behind her looks to be ready to skip further dialogue and add another deer lady head to the collection in short order.

How I Came To Know It: I’ve liked Neko Case a long time, but the reason why is lost in the mists of time. I think I heard a song from around this era (the first album of hers I purchased was 2009’s Middle Cyclone). This one was next, as I began my oft-employed system of drilling into an artist’s back catalogue.

How It Stacks Up: I have nine Neko Case albums. “Fox Confessor Brings the Flood” is tied for #1 with the “The Virginian.” I originally gave the latter the edge, but I must revisit this hasty decision and put “Fox Confessor…” out front. It would have taken a perfect record to manage that feat, but…here we are.

Ratings: 5 stars

While Middle Cyclone was the album that first caught my attention, it was “Fox Confessor Brings the Flood” that made me realize just what a treasure I had unearthed in Neko Case. This record is a modern classic.

If you seek to define “Fox Confessor…” you’ll find the effort is in vain. Case blends country, folk, pop, and old-time church music together into a genre-defying swoon. The unifying factor is her innovative approach to songwriting and a voice as big and brassy as a steeple bell.

On her first three albums, Case lends her vocals to alt-folk and country, and these albums are all great – some of her best in fact. But on “Fox Confessor” she takes new paths in her approach to music, experimenting fearlessly through genres, delivery, production and arrangement. Despite all these shifts in approach, the songs have a common soul to them that makes the record feel united in something. It is hard to say what that something is, but Case’s approach makes it feel important.

The album opens with “Margaret vs. Pauline” a song that is loosely based on Richard Brautigan’s bizarre novel, “In Watermelon Sugar.” I liked “In Watermelon Sugar” well enough but it never connected with me emotionally. Case takes the story of a couple of those characters and grounds them in their tragedy with a series of deft lines that land with deliberate purpose. The different fates of our two titular characters ultimately summed up with a stark and simple set of images:

“Two girls ride the blue line
Two girls walk down the same street
One left her sweater sittin' on the train
The other lost three fingers at the cannery”

That song is immediately followed on by “Star Witness” which is the best on the record, mixing Case’s bold power through each stanza, matched with a light lilt in the chorus that feels like that breathless moment in a Viennese Waltz when the dancers start gliding across the floor. Yeah, I’ve been watching a bit of So You Think You Can Dance.

The second half of the record isn’t as full of immediately accessible singles as the first, but it is just as powerful as it explores multiple facets of Case’s style and imagination. She is a jubilant southern preacher on “John Saw That Number,” tells a dark and deadly fairy tale on “Dirty Knife” and then wraps herself up in a Patsy Cline-like croon on “Lion’s Jaws”. Every song is different than the last, every one dripping with first rate poetry, brought to life by Case’s vocal prowess.

With all those great lyrics, it was disappointing that the CD’s booklet was just a collection of art projects and photos. If you’re going to go to the trouble of giving me a booklet, putting the lyrics in there is the decent thing to do.

However, that’s my only criticism of a record that is brilliant at every turn. I’ve heard “Fox Confessor…” countless times over the years, and not only do I never grow tired of it, it reveals some new and wonderful beauty to me each time I put it on.

Best tracks: all tracks

CD Odyssey Disc 1568: Amon Amarth

Happy Canada Day! Here’s a review to get your holiday off on the right foot.

Disc 1568 is…. Berserker

Artist: Amon Amarth

Year of Release: 2019

What’s up with the Cover? Our titular character, wading fearlessly into battle against a host of spearmen. Of course, a lot of these guys would have died behaving this way, but Amon Amarth has decided to capture that moment in time when the berserker is really feeling it.

Right at this moment, everything is looking rosy. Sure he’s been cut a couple of times, but there’s more blood on his axe blade than his chest, so it’s all good. Later, that rosy outlook will probably be replaced with the frothy pink blood that suggests one of those spears has pierced a lung. For right now things are looking up, and there’s more killin’ to do, ‘ere the end.

How I Came To Know It: My friend Greg played me a song off of this album called “Shield Wall”. It was pretty awesome and from there I’ve fallen pretty hard for this band, buying five of their albums over the past six months or so.

How It Stacks Up: I previously reviewed “Twilight of the Thunder God” and “Jomsviking” and, wanting to leave room for this record to beat them out. But having listened to all three, and with a better understanding of the band overall I think they are both better, dropping “Berserker” into #5.

Ratings: 3 stars

On “Berserker” Amon Amarth lighten up. In fact, this record is positively cheery by their standards – a couple songs even have intros featuring classical guitar and cellos. These don’t last long though, and it is important to understand that “cheery” here still means you will be enjoying an onslaught of Viking melodic death metal. This record is the most melodic of what I’ve heard from them so far though, so cheery within that context only.

The hallmarks of the band remain, with the guttural screams of Johan Hegg and the driving crunchy rhythm of Johan Soderberg’s guitar. These two things alone should be enough to get your head banging with enthusiasm. Soderberg is a stalwart of the band from the beginning. Amon Amarth is one of those bands, like ACDC, where the rhythm guy is king. He is the reason this stuff has a melodic structure and a gem of a musician. Lead Olavi Mikkonen is no slouch either. Together, these guys are magic.

Hegg’s vocals are a bit less guttural than usual here, but since that’s not angry rasp isn’t typically in my wheelhouse anyway, I was happy that the lyrics were easier to understand. If you are feeling participatory, I still wouldn’t try to sing along; with death metal you are better off employing air guitar or drums if you don’t want to hurt your throat.  It was awesome to be able to better hear the stories unfold, though.

With those stories you will be treated to a whole lot of Viking history and mythology. If you don’t consider that a treat, you should probably find a different band to listen to. I happen to roll just fine with that, and “Berserker” has a number of killer tracks that fit the bill.

The most notable is “Shield Wall,” the song that first drew me to the band. This song has an urgency and power that perfectly captures what I imagine what it would have felt like to stand in a shield wall, your trusted companions on either side of you, feeling invulnerable. Likely you’d also be wondering at the lunacy of the berserkers who’d torn their shirts off and run out in front. Like what the hell, man, get back here where we can help you! Big I digress…

“Shield Wall” is a masterful display of Jocke Wallgren’s drumming. Wallgren’s work is a perfect blend of furious, precise, and heavy as fuck. It is only his second album with the band, and while we could all sit around bemoaning the loss of the brilliant Fredrik Andersson, I’m just thrilled to have one great drummer replaced with another.

On this record I also mused that Viking metal bands sing about Thor a lot. I mean, there is lots of Norse mythology to go around, but Thor is the guy who gets the most airtime. That he tends to fill that air with thunder and lightning must add to the appeal. On this record “Crack the Sky” edges out “Mjolner, Hammer of Thor” as “best Thor song” but they’re both solid.

Less good is “Ironside,” which is about a real-life historical figure that fans of the TV show “Vikings” will be familiar with. Here the band tells the story, but it feels like they sacrifice poetry in service to ensuring all the details are right. A good song needs to employ imagery and emotion as well as the specifics of the events.

But this is a minor quibble. After all, “The Berserker at Stamford Bridge” does the same thing, and it is tons of fun (spoiler alert – he eventually dies and probably should have stayed in the shield wall). Overall, this record is another brilliant entry in Amon Amarth’s discography and has me looking forward to the release of “the Great Heathen Army” due out in August. Bring it on!

Best tracks: Crack the Sky, Shield Wall, Raven’s Flight, Into the Dark

CD Odyssey Disc 1567: Lord Huron

Apologies for the long absence, dear readers. It has been a busy week. So busy that I couldn’t even squeeze in a music review (or much of anything else). This means this next record got a lot listens. Good thing I like it. It is almost like this music collection was hand curated to my own tastes…

Disc 1567 is…. Lonesome Dreams

Artist: Lord Huron

Year of Release: 2012

What’s up with the Cover? A cowboy desert scene. This cover captures how vast the sky must seem when you are in the middle of a desert. Unfortunately, with this kind of “diffuse” art you can’t make out many features of the cowboy. Let’s call him ‘Earl’. The horse, of course, has no name.

How I Came To Know It: If memory serves my friend Casey played some Lord Huron songs at a gathering of our music club one night. If it was someone else, my apologies. In any event, I liked what I heard which led me to buy both this album and 2015’s “Strange Tales” which dates about when I heard about both records.

How It Stacks Up: I have three Lord Huron albums. This one and “Strange Tales” are in a dead heat for best of the bunch, and I didn’t want to pick until I’ve had a chance to review them both. However, since I don’t have a choice to delay (or more exactly won’t give myself a choice) I am going to put this album in at #2. I was going to put it #1 but after seeing a live performance of the band on KEXP, I changed my mind. More on that later.

Ratings: 4 stars

“Lonesome Dreams” has a haunting lilt to it that draws you in like a lucid dream. Each song flows gently into the next so seamlessly that before you know it the album has restarted for the fifth or sixth time without you even noticing. Like I said, I got a lot of listens in on this one.

Despite all those listens I was never restless or eager to move on to something else, which may be the best things that can be said about a record. It has re-listenability, and while I didn’t necessarily get something new on every iteration, I enjoyed them all.

Stylistically, Lord Huron doesn’t sound like any other band I can think of. They operate a space between folk and rock, but within a soup of diffuse production. I usually like a lot of space in my production decisions, but “Lonesome Dreams” showed me you can do it differently and still make it work.

The arrangements lend themselves to the dreamy production. Most of the songs have some form of a light gallop guitar strum, often with some other instrument (strings, tambourine, etc.) filling in the gaps. Lead singer (and songwriter) Ben Schneider’s vocals sit back in the mix with a lot of harmony in the background (either looping or another band member, not sure which) which makes it feel symphonic. This “chorus” sound is on virtually every single track which holds the record together. It is a lot of the same sound, and the songs tend to cycle within themselves as well, but strangely it never gets tiresome.

My favourite song on the record is “Ghost on the Shore,” in part because of how that sonic approach works so well for telling a ghost story. The other part is this some of Schneider’s best work lyrically. Here’s the second verse:

“Under the waves and the earth of an age
Lie a thousand old northerner’s graves
Deep in the night, when the moon’s glowing bright
They come rising up into the light.
I’ll die if I must, let my bones turn to dust
I’m the lord of the lake, and I don’t want to leave it
All who sail off the coast evermore
Will remember the tale of the ghost on the shore.

That is some creepy brilliance, packing shipwrecks, and dirt and bones up with the breathless excitement at wondering “was that just a trick of the moonlight, or did we see a ghost?” For the song at least, it’s pretty clear it’s the latter.

Connectivity plays a big part in the record’s themes. The ghost is connected to the landscape, and elsewhere we see characters chase after lost loves (“She Lit a Fire”), while others stand steadfast in the strength of the love of brothers facing adversity together (“Brother”).

“Ends of the Earth” is the most famous of those “let’s stand together” tunes. While it has not benefited from being overplayed in a million TV commercials over the years, but it is still a great song. Immeasurably better when not shilling for a product.

My only beef ended up being with that thing I had earlier forgiven, the production. That lush atmospheric sound had me under its spell until I heard a few of these songs played live. When I realized how shortchanged I’d been of the dynamics and tone of Schneider’s voice, which is a amazing when it isn’t so layered over, I became somewhat irked. For the first time I began to notice all the excess. The steel drums in “The Man Who Lives Forever” was particularly off-putting.

However, it was not so off-putting to interfere with the joy I get from “Lonesome Dreams.” It is a quality album, and the joy I experienced never flagged across multiple listens this week.

Best tracks: Ends of the Earth, Time To Run, The Ghost on the Earth, The Man Who Lives Forever, Brother

CD Odyssey Disc 1566: Brandi Carlile

For the second time in a row I’m reviewing a record from 2009 that I overlooked when it was first released. For readers who think no one is making good music anymore, it may be that you are just missing it. Open your ears and open your hearts – you’ll find what’s right for you.

Disc 1566 is…. Give Up the Ghost

Artist: Brandi Carlile

Year of Release: 2009

What’s up with the Cover? A backlit Brandi rocks out on the guitar. I love the warmth of this album cover. Usually references to ghosts come with gloomy and dark album covers (or in the case of the band, “Ghost” a boatload o’ Satan). Here we have the bright light of day, as we give up the ghost, and turn to the light.

How I Came To Know It: I’m a late convert to Brandi Carlile. I only got into her in 2018 through her album, “By the Way, I Forgive You” (reviewed back at Disc 1135). Afterward I started digging through her back catalogue, but I wasn’t initially taken by her earliest three records, including this one. For some reason I revisited these records (encouraged by a cover album of “The Story”). I recently saw “Give Up the Ghost” used at a good price in my local record store and took a chance.

How It Stacks Up: I now have six Brandi Carlile albums. I have a hard time ranking them, partly because they are all so good, partly because they are all different, and partly because I’ve gotten to know them all in only four years, instead of the 15 year span over which they were released. However, since you don’t read this section for empty equivocations, I’ll say this record slightly edges out “Bear Creek” for #4.

Ratings: 4 stars

Back in 2018 I passed over “Give Up the Ghost” after one listen, but after four more consider me both converted and chastened that I ever passed it over in the first place.

“Give Up the Ghost” came out two years after Carlile’s breakthrough album “The Story” and despite charting higher than that record, it feels like it lives in the shadow of it when Carlile’s discography comes up in conversation. “The Story” may be slightly superior, but it is only slightly, and all the things that make Carlile great are on full display with “Ghost” as well.

We are treated to the fine songwriting that is borne from her longstanding collaboration with the Hanseroth twins, exceptional musicianship throughout, and above it all that one-in-a-generation voice. Carlile’s vocals cut through sunshine and darkness with equal power, delivering songs that are triumphant, tragic and always tell a story. It is hard to understand just what makes one voice draw you under a spell and another fade into the background, but Carlile is the former.

Fitting for an album titled “Give Up the Ghost” many of these songs are stories about letting the past go, although usually only after first coming to terms with its lessons. The standout “Pride and Joy” is a song of parting and forgiveness, I think about a departed parent. Lines like:

“That’s the problem with the days
They’re never long enough to say
What it is you never said
All the books you never read.”

Leave you with unresolved regret, and images like:

“All your mountains turn to rocks
All your oceans turn to drops”

Demonstrate how our strongest convictions can tumble down into the chaos of uncertainty. Both sections also show how great she is at the power of the rhyming couplet (and yes, I know that last one doesn’t rhyme. This is a song not Alexander Pope, people).

The song ends with soaring strings that add a lovely emotional flourish without crowding the production. The album has a full sound but with a lot of space in between elements. It was brilliantly balanced, and I was not at all surprised to discover it was produced by Rick Rubin.

Another standout is “That Year”, also a song combining forgiveness and reminiscence. Carlile belts out a lot of tunes, but “That Year” opts for a light sweet tone, that still cuts through the air in the room with easy power.

The record is not perfect. “Dreams” had a sort of manic showtune quality that didn’t appeal to me, and the old timey “Caroline” is marred by a jumpy “Old West barroom” piano style that felt hokey. I looked to see who was playing, and it turns out it was a guest spot for…Sir Elton John. Sorry, Elton, but I write ‘em like I hear ‘em.

Fortunately there is lots of good piano, notably Carlile’s own graceful playing on “Before It Breaks”. The tune rides right up to the edge of overwrought, but the vocals are so powerful they are like a centrifugal force that holds everything steady. In moments like this Carlile’s natural talent and phrasing pulls the song through hairpin emotional corners with the grace of a biker leaning close to the road and hitting the throttle.

The album ends with a light-hearted tune backed by a ukulele which is a bit too dear but by this point it was too late to ruin anything. I was hooked. I love this record, and my biggest criticism is leveled at myself; I should’ve bought it years ago.

Best tracks: Looking Out, Dying Day, Pride and Joy, That Year, Before It Breaks

CD Odyssey Disc 1565: Frank Turner

After successfully escaping my desk to eat my lunch outside I sought a bench nearby that was both out of the wind, but in the sun. Alas, it was not to be. I chose a bench that was partly out of the wind, but wholly in the shade. Believe me, dear reader, when I tell you it was the only option.

Disc 1565 is…. Poetry of the Deed

Artist: Frank Turner

Year of Release: 2009

What’s up with the Cover? Guitar art (guitart?) Here we have Frank Turner’s guitar (identified by its signature F/T/H/C punk logo), surrounded by a flock of birds with the strings in their beaks.

The birds might be playing a tune, as birds are wont to do, but given that the birds all have an “x” on their heads, it is also possible they are ‘muting’ the strings.

How I Came To Know It: This album came to me early in my love of Frank Turner as I began to dig backward from my first Frank album, 2013’s “Tape Deck Heart”. My first stop was 2011’s “England Keep My Bones” and my second was…right here.

How It Stacks Up: I have eight Frank Turner albums and competition is tough at the top, but “Poetry of the Deed” still manages to land at #3.

Ratings: 4 stars

If you ever want to feel great about life, but you don’t want your hopeful tunes to be empty calories, then Frank Turner is the artist for you. Turner is the master of joyful anthems that have all the uncertainty the real life offers, but that are reassuring all the same. If anything, the edge is what makes the reassurance believable.

This is still early Frank Turner, and a lot of his work is wrapped up in the power of art, but for Turner that creative spirit is reflected in action and intent. Nowhere is it more evident than on the title track, where Frank expresses poetic expression as:

“Before we get bored, let's be inspired
Let's ignore the applause and set the theater on fire
Fight every war like the drunks in the choir
Put our art where our mouths are poetry of the deed”

There’s a reckless abandon in his delivery throughout the record. The piano get banged with gusto, and the guitar chords threaten to break strings with their hefty reverberation. Turner is a new generation’s Billy Bragg, filled with a mix of wisdom and conviction that is infectious.

My favourite song on the record is “Try This At Home” where exclaims that “we write love songs in C, do politics in G and sings songs abut our friends in E minor.” The song demonstrates the musical filter through which Turner sees the world, although I am always curious as to why songs about our friends are in Em. Feels a little sad, but the song belies that notion and is a joyous celebration of getting on with living.

As on many records, Turner speaks highly of his friends. Drinks in the park on “Dan’s Song” switch later to the quiet introspection and fellowship of “Sunday Nights”. Turner loves companionship and his infectious open heart makes it easy to imagine you are on of those lucky fellows chilling with him late into a Sunday evening when the sensible thing would be to go to bed.

But to go to bed early would be anathema to the energy of “Poetry of the Deed.” This is a record for living, and celebrating each adventure that life brings. The record trips along with a relentless pace and energy and even though it is 13 songs and close to 50 minutes of music, the whole of it is over in the blink of an eye.

The record’s final song, “Journey of the Magi” is the summation of Turner’s philosophy of living life to its fullest and being self-aware and thankful as you do it. In the song, a series of famous characters recount how they regret nothing in choosing adventure over comfort. Its slow deliberate delivery makes you feel like you are being regaled with wisdom around some mythical campfire. The whole record feels like this, exhorting the listener to action while never feeling like a lecture.

Given that I’m on a CD Odyssey, I’ll leave this review with a few lines from “Journey of the Magi” that celebrate Odysseus and remind us to say ‘yes’ each and every time life offers us a dance:

“Now Odysseus sat tired and alone
He'd always held out against all the doubts he would come home
Now he was here, his soul felt estranged
His wife and his dog, his son and his gods, everything changed”

“He sang, ‘I could have stayed and ruled
As an Ithacan prince, could've played safe
But in the end journey's brought joys
That outweigh the pain’”

Best tracks: Live Fast Day Old, Try This at Home, Poetry of the Deed, Isabel, Sunday Nights, Journey of the Magi