Cat Power - Jukebox - Deluxe Edition
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Free Music Notes for Jukebox - Deluxe Edition
Free Music Review: Get the deluxe edition
Hit: 5 Stars
That's right indie kids, Chan is less depressed and therefore able to express a greater range of emotion, in music that will likely appeal to more people. And that, of course, makes the music inferior to stuff that only you and your hipster friends appreciate--I mean, what the hell's the point of listening to something that doesn't make you feel like the coolest kids in the dorm? Alright, enough sarcasm. This may be Cat Power's best album yet, with its trippy tortured version of "Blue" and the original "Song for Bobby" which just might have Mr. Zimmerman seeking a restraining order. The real point of this review, however, is to point out that the songs on the bonus disc in the Deluxe Edition are NOT the usual "bonus" crap that was rightfully left off of (or not even considered for) the actual album. So, it's the one to get, especially considering that, last time I looked, the Deluxe Edition was actually selling at a lower price than the non-deluxe version (and even if that's changed, it's worth whatever extra couple of bucks makes up the difference). Free Music Review: Fine addition to a growing catalog
Hit: 5 Stars
Maybe Cat Powers early recordings are too unique, too personal, and too good. Many who discovered Cat Power in the early days are very opinionated about anything and everything she's done since. They seem to want every new record to be recorded at the same tempo with the same spare sound. When a new Covers record was announced, they were surely hoping it would be just like the first one, or better yet, a retread of Moon Pix. Never mind that those records were recorded long ago when Chan was a different person in a different place.
Those same fans crowed that The Greatest was some kind of sellout. It was so glossy that it somehow showed Marshall's true aspirations to become a pop star. Never mind the fact that it was recorded by Al Green's old sidemen on old equipment and had a decidedly low-fi sound by today's standards. (And that she was completely unable to support the album due to personal issues.) They can be forgiven somewhat though; the title track was possibly a bit overproduced. Since it was track #1, some probably tuned out and ended up missing the other great songs and performances.
As great and beloved as the early Cat Power recordings are, she's an artist who has grown and has the ability to reach higher now. There is nothing by the numbers about Jukebox. There is more creativity in this one record of "covers" than you will find in 99% of the original music that will be released this year. Each song becomes definitively her own, the band is brilliant, and her voice is clearer and stronger than it's ever been. Those are all good things. The cd is great all the way through with many standouts. New York is almost shocking when it registers what you are listening to. The decision that it was time to cover some of Marshall's own songs after 10 years was brilliant. The Dylan back to back, one cover, one original track, is incredible. I would wager money that Dylan himself would say so.
Jukebox is essential listening. (Deluxe Edition is a MUST.)
Free Music Review: Poor people dress ugly.
Hit: 1 Stars
Ext.Manhattan skyrise.
Int.Womens restroom.
Summer.
TOILET FLUSHES
Glamorpus:(wipes nose on sleeve) Mirror mirror on the-uhm- wall, uhm do these jeans make me look pregnant.
TeenVogue:Yuck! I think your mothers talking to herself again.
Seventeen:She's not my mother skeezebag.
Glamorpus:Hey uh mirror mirror on the thing, uhm do you think I'm getting lowballed from that yacht dealership for, you know, recording that thing for their thing.(Glamorpus begins to clumsily dance.)
TeenVogue:Gross, now shes trying to be like whatever.
Seventeen:She has pretty eyes though.
Glamorpus loses consciousness and drops to the floor. Eventually Glamorpus acquires enough mentation to use her purse as an ad hoc pillow.
TOILET FLUSHES
Free Music Review: the old and the new
Hit: 3 Stars
The album to compare this to is her first covers album The Covers Record; that was from 2000, and the young singer has grown and changed a lot since then. Her stunningly stark, almost gothic (but spare) setting of some familiar and lesser known songs was raw and powerful then. Now she's working with experienced musicians, and is more experienced herself, and the sound is warmer, more assured, more rock and blues oriented. I like the new disc fine, but only a few tracks really stand out: a new version of "Metal Heart" that is moody and acoustic, and her love song to Aretha Franklin, whom you can really cite as an influence on her current retro-rock sound. Chan Marshall is feeling her Southern Soul roots.
The point of this review, however, is to say that if you're a fan of her earlier albums, be sure you get this deluxe version with the extra E.P., because it's actually better than the main album. Here you find the Patsy Cline classic "She's Got You," but Chan's delivery makes even Patsy's version sound happy in comparison, plus an epic and meandering and devastating version of "Angelitos Negros." The EP has an overall downbeat vibe that recalls the stripped down and minimal Cat Power of old.
Free Music Review: Mini-Review
Hit: 4 Stars
It took me a week of listening to figure out why Jukebox won't leave my CD player (or keeps getting selected on my iPod)...Finally, two words emerged that best describe it: Sultry & Hypnotic. Her backing band is tremendous here and worthy of the same kind of praise heaped on Chan for her vocals. If anything, her voice is less expressive as it occasionally slides to the background. But that's exactly one of the bizarre strengths of this album. Jim White's spontaneous, striking and nuanced drumming is beautiful, as is everything from the guitar tones, to the wurlitzer and Hammond organ. Sparse, but with a confident swagger, the MOOD of the album as a whole is warm and inviting.