After more than a decade with
Modest Mouse
,
Isaac Brock
still sounds young and weird and searching, and never more so than on
Good News for People Who Love Bad News
, which follows the band's meditative
The Moon & Antarctica
with a set of songs that are more focused, but also less obviously profound. The occasionally indulgent feel of
allowed
the room to make epic statements about life, death, and the afterlife; while
is equally concerned with mortality and spirituality, it has a more active, immediate feel that makes its comments on these subjects that much more pointed. The band hits these points home with a louder, more
rock
-oriented sound than they've had since
The Lonesome Crowded West
, particularly on
"Bury Me with It,"
which embodies many of the contradictions that continue to make
fascinating. For a song loosely about contemplating death, it sounds strikingly vital and liberated;
Brock
delivers finely shaded lyrics like "We are hummingbirds who've lost the plot and we will not move" with a barbaric yawp; it's nonsensical but oddly climactic, conveying how what seems trivial can be anything but.
"The View"
's angular bassline and scratchy guitars underscore the
Talking Heads
influence on
, but since
the Heads
have become a more trendy touchstone (mostly for bands with less creativity than either
or
), it's nice to hear how
and company take that influence in a different direction instead of just rehashing it with less inspiration. Feeling stuck is a major theme on
, but the same can't be said about the album's sound, which spans the forceful
of the aforementioned songs, to the pretty
guitar pop
of
"Float On"
and
"Ocean Breathes Salty,"
to the lovely, rustic
"Blame It on the Tetons."
That's not even mentioning the contributions of
the Dirty Dozen Brass Band
, who open
with the aptly named
"Horn Intro."
They also add a theatrical jolt to the wickedly funny,
Tom Waits
-inspired
"Devil's Workday,"
which along with the noisy stomp of
"Dance Hall"
"Bukowski"
's witty self-loathing, underscore that
haven't lost the edge that made the band compelling in the first place. Other standouts include
"Satin in a Coffin,"
a creatively creepy mix of rattling
bluegrass
-
with a
tango
beat that nods to the group's backwater roots;
"One Chance,"
an unusually open and straightforward
ballad
; and the dreamlike
"World at Large,"
on which
sings, "I like songs about drifters -- books about the same/They both seem to make me feel a little less insane," once again proving that he's a past master of lyrics that are both abstract and precise. Even though this album isn't as immediately or showily brilliant as
reveals itself as just as strong a statement. By drawing an even sharper contrast between the harsh and beautiful things about their music, as well as life,
have made an album that's moving and relevant without being pretentious about it. ~ Heather Phares