Monday, March 16, 2009

Like the End of Something Wonderful

Were you worried Billy'd crossed over to the other side? Me too. I guess we were wrong. Today's New York Times sports a long-deserved and up-front review of the new album which is weirdly flattering and, at the same time, disparaging.

"
Mr. Oldham’s persona is a little bit of a lonesome romantic and a lot of a fool. He sounds generally optimistic, even when he’s singing about treachery...He never flatters himself. He’s not special. His love is effortful and can be one-sided. He’s easily satisfied. He can’t be counted on... Something is always lost in translation with him."

My favorite is the last line in reference to breadth and depth of talent in his accompanying musicians, "There’s a sense here of smart people being made to focus on a strange project."
It's refreshing to see he can still make the critics stutter.

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