Posted in Album Reviews

Leonard Cohen – Songs From A Room (1969)

Posted on by Michael

After an aborted session with David Crosby, Leonard Cohen turned to producer Bob Johnston for his second album, Songs From A Room. Starting with the classic, “Bird On The Wire”, the plaintive song adds strings to the background.  Here Cohen opens up, for better or worse, as he sings, “If I have been unkind/I hope that you can just let it go by”.  Several songs are biblical in nature and recall Bob Dylan on tracks such as “Story of Isaac” and “The Old Revolution”. With a touch of echo in the vocal, Cohen sings of an acquaintance who committed suicide at too young of an age on the haunting “Seems So Long Ago, Nancy”.  

The songs on the sophomore album sound more stark and cold than than Cohen’s classic debut album from 1967.  Whereas the cover of that album shows the singer in colour, here he is shown in black/white, just a shadow.  The album warms up towards the end with “Lady Midnight” that adds an organ/keyboard in the background and closes with the simple folk pop sound of “Tonight Will Be Fine” that will have the listener nodding along as Leonard Cohen sings “and I know from your smile/That tonight will be fine…for awhile”.

7.5/10

Advertisement
Posted in Album Reviews

David Bowie – Pin-Ups (1973)

Posted on by Michael

Released 6 months after Aladdin Sane, David Bowie released the covers album Pin-Ups as a stop gap release for the record label. The album is mostly glammed up versions of R&B hits released in the 60s while Bowie was a teenager.  On “See Emily Play” (Pink Floyd), Bowie and The Spiders from Mars (minus drummer Mick Woodmansey) add 90 seconds of psychedelia at the end. Of the two tracks originally by The Who, “I Can’t Explain” is the better one that Bowie turns into a slower, sleazy love song.  “Sorrow” (The Merseys) is another highlight.  The easy, laidback beat adds strings and horns as Bowie turns in a very good vocal performance. 

The two tracks that sound the most like original Bowie songs is “Friday On My Mind” (The Easybeats) and The Kinks’ “Where Have All the Good Times Gone”.  While Pin-Ups mostly feels like a quick, dashed off recording, it does open the listener to several tracks that may have been forgotten.  In the age of streaming, downloading the originals would make for a cracking compilation playlist.

7/10

Posted in Album Reviews

Belle and Sebastian – Late Developers (2023)

Posted on by Michael

Belle and Sebastian have quickly followed up their 2022 release, A Bit of Previous with Late Developers released just 7 months later.  “Juliet Naked” comes in immediately as the music starts.  The band sound really confident, far away from awkward teenage glances as Stuart Murdoch sings of “prayers and pills, dusty nights in quivering hotels”.  The sound immediately shifts on “Give a Little Time” where Sarah Martin takes over the vocals with chirpy handclaps and talk that “these are the best days”.

 Martin takes over the vocals again on the funky “When You’re Not With Me” before the Passion Pit like synth track, “I Don’t Know What You See In Me”.  The confidence of earlier songs disappear where Murdoch questions whether he is good enough. Martin and Murdoch then share vocal duties on the 60s folk sound of “Will I Tell You a Secret”.  The album closes with the title track that adds horns and has a bit of a jam feel to start, nice keyboards and a bit of drumming.

Late Developers has a modern flair but includes what has always made Belle and Sebastian a cult favourite, including the album cover.  Sarah Martin shines whenever she steps up to the mic.  Stuart Murdoch adds several classic B&S lyrics like the “I wish I could be content with the football scores” line on “When We Were Very Young”. Cementing his nerdy/cool outsider status even into his 50s.  Late Developers is a full band effort that rivals some of their music from the early 2000s.

8.5/10

Posted in Album Reviews

Weyes Blood – And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow

Posted on by Michael

The second in a trilogy of albums, And In the Darkness, Hearts Aglow follows up the excellent Titanic Rising.  Hearts Aglow has the feel of a singer-songwriter album from the 70s. “It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody” embodies this 70s esthetic, a touch of soulfulness that soothes as it drifts along. Natalie Laura Mering’s voice is strikingly beautiful, it is well showcased on the minimalist “God Turn Me Into A Flower”.  “Hearts Aglow” is highlighted with a Wurlitzer as the soundscape swoops.

“Children Of The Empire” has a brighter sound, with snappy finger snapping in the chorus, it’s a bit more attention grabbing than some of other tracks.  A couple instrumentals appear on the second half including the watery sounds of “In Holy Flux”.  Working with a few different arrangers/producers including Jonathan Rado, all of …Hearts Aglow is quite lovely but often does not really grab the listeners attention as it moves along.  Under the beauty there is often not much there… there.

7/10