2018: Cat Power, Kristin Hersh, St. Vincent, Colter Wall
Some of indie rock's most successful artists
Artists record and release alternate materials for their albums more often than you’d think. Sometimes it’s like Taylor Swift’s longterm project, sometimes it’s more like demos on a deluxe edition. St. Vincent’s album is a completely reimagined rendition of the songs on MASSEDUCTION. It is the rare alternate version that (my opinion only) exceeds the original album, even though the original album is fantastic.
Cat Power. Wanderer.
United States, October 5
I think this is what folks refer to when they speak of quiet storms. Cat Power began by making sprawling squalls. Later she turned to shaping tidy commotions. Quiet storms, or something like them, were an inevitable evolution — like hurricanes coming undone.
Kristin Hersh. Possible Dust Clouds.
United States, October 5
If I were designing a tarot deck based on indie rock heroes of the 1980s, and sticking with era gender designations while doing so, I would make Kim Gordon the Queen of Swords to honor her deep reservoirs of detached cool. The Queen of Cups would have to be Elizabeth Fraser, whose approach to vocals is absolutely liquid. Kim Deal, who kept fantastical soundscapes grounded in the earthly, I would make the Queen of Pentacles. But my favorite Queen is Wands, and Kristin Hersh is definitely the Queen of Wands.
St. Vincent. Mass Education.
United States, October 12
What would you rather – the glittery, glamorous sharp-edged front of the house barn-burner? Or the dimly-lit dressing room solo piano comedown three hours later? Me too, me too.
Colter Wall. Songs of the Plains.
Canada, October 12
As a devotee of marvelous women’s singing voices, it takes a real whanger of a man’s voice to turn my head all on its own. Colter Wall has one of those. Thank goodness, he also has an anachronistic aesthetic that permits his singing a timeless mix of folk and cowboy styles. Somewhere a campfire is waiting, surrounded by dogies on the drive.