Nine seconds into her first studio album since 2002's Blacklisted, and there it is. You can't miss it. The voice. Instantly recognizable and uniquely commanding, it has been uniformly overlooked by the masses and beloved by those who have caught on. And, believe it or not, it gets even better, whether Neko Case is warbling like a porch-swing neighbor to Loretta Lynn ("Margaret vs. Paulene," "John Saw That Number"), pontificating from the spiritual pulpit of Etta James ("Lion's Jaws," "Maybe Sparrow"), or unleashing the high-octane zeal of a power-pop spitfire ("Hold On Hold On," "The Needle Has Landed"). Her uncanny, often eccentric lyrics have always been delivered with an inherent passion behind the impulse, but rarely have they approached the boldness of these dozen--many of which were inspired by generations of tales from her Ukrainian ancestors. As usual, Case's industry running buddies collaborate to make the sounds behind her, from Calexico to Howe Gelb of Giant Sand to the Band's renowned Garth Hudson. Still, it all comes back to the voice, that serenading urgency that asks in the title song, "How can people not know what beauty this is?" Yes, there are some to ask, how not? --Scott Holter More from Neko Case Furnace Room Lullaby Blacklisted The Tigers Have Spoken Mass Romantic, the New Pornographers featuring Neko Case Electric Version, the New Pornographers featuring Neko Case Twin Cinema, the New Pornographers featuring Neko Case
Review by Mark Deming
Neko Case hasn't had much need to prove her credentials as a major artist since making her solo debut with 1997's The Virginian, but she's been refining her skills in the recording studio on each subsequent release, and with 2006's Fox Confessor Brings the Flood she's fashioned an album that can cautiously be called a masterpiece. As always, Case's voice, an instrument of impressive strength, grace, and expressive power, is the star of this show, and she's never sounded better than she does here, but what sets this apart from her other fine work is her growth as a songwriter and producer. Case wrote or co-wrote all 12 tracks on Fox Confessor Brings the Flood, and her tales of failed friendship, faith stretched to the breaking point, and love that causes as much ache as comfort are subtle and expressionistic but deeply evocative, conjuring images and feelings that linger long after the album has ended, especially the spectral "Star Witness," the moody yet romantic "That Teenage Feeling" and "Hold on, Hold On," and the darkly beautiful closer, "The Needle Has Landed." And Case and her co-producer, Darryl Neudorf, have assembled a superb cast of musicians to accompany these songs, among them members of the Sadies and Calexico as well as Garth Hudson of the Band, Howe Gelb from Giant Sand, and Kelly Hogan. Together they've sculpted a dozen elegant sonic landscapes that are beautiful and richly detailed while meshing with the moody textures of the songs in their open space and unwillingness to crowd either the singer or the other players. The cumulative effect mirrors both the beauty and the sadness that lurks within the human heart, and Fox Confessor Brings the Flood is a rich, mature, and deeply satisfying piece of music that deserves and demands attention -- if this isn't Album of the Year material, it's hard to say what is.
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