Norah Jones returns to her roots
Fourteen years later, we’re still a deeply polarized nation. Those who loved Norah Jones’ breakout debut album, “Come Away With Me,” will enjoy “Day Breaks.” It’s music for the coffeehouse crowd that prefers songs sung in an indoor voice.
As for those who found Jones’ early work too mellow, they’re unlikely to applaud the return to her roots. She’s again serving up intimate ballads in a sultry alto with hints of jazz, and while the music is pretty, it’s also pretty polite.
There’s a disconnect when pulling down from the cloud new music so grounded in the last century, especially the singer-songwriter heyday of the 1970s. “Flipside” echoes Joe Jackson, “It’s a Wonderful Time for Love” borrows from Van Morrison and “Don’t Be Denied” covers Neil Young.
On her original tunes Jones sings about alcoholism (“Tragedy”), deceit (“Sleeping Wild”) and a relationship giving off the wrong kind of heat (“Burn”), but she never raises the temperature herself. Standout drummer Brian Blade manages to boost the energy level at times, as do horn arrangements on a few cuts, but Wayne Shorter’s squawky soprano sax seems jarring.
- Steven Wine
Associated Press
Phish will not be remembered for its studio releases, and “Big Boat” shows why.
Bookended with a couple of duds, obfuscating some real gems in between, the Vermont-based jam band’s 13th official studio effort is an uneven affair. It will leave longtime fans scratching their heads at some of the choices made while doing little to persuade anyone new to the scene to pay attention to Phish’s studio output.
To be sure, there are songs worth remembering. “Waking Up Dead,” by bass player Mike Gordon, is a standout, as are songs the band worked out live before recording, most notably “No Men in No Man’s Land.” Keyboardist Page McConnell appears to channel outsider musician Daniel Johnston in the refreshingly ragged ditty “Things People Do.”
But “Friends,” the track that kicks off “Big Boat,” is an overproduced disaster that sounds more like a Pink Floyd outtake. “I Always Wanted It This Way” also sounds like a Floyd cast-off, and not in a good way.
Then there’s “Petrichor,” the orchestrated closer named for the pleasant smell that comes after a rainfall following dry weather. At 13 minutes, it goes on about 10 minutes too long, and isn’t all that pleasant.
- Scott Bauer
Associated Press