2012 is turning out to be a pretty good year for women singers. Just in the past few weeks (fall 2012) we've seen a critical mass of new releases by women singers--most notably by Iris DeMent (Sing the Delta), Aimee Mann (Charmer) and Tift Merritt (Traveling Alone). But let the record show that Bonnie Raitt, Fiona Apple, Suzanne Vega, Beth Orton and Diana Krall also have new records out, and I've already reviewed new records by Kathleen Edwards and Alison Krauss (plus Krauss' concert at the Biltmore in Asheville, NC).
See my separate review of Iris DeMent.
Aimee Mann
Aimee Mann has been around since the techno-pop of Til Tuesday in the 1980s. She hasn't been prolific exactly, but unlike Iris she's been steady. Her new record is her 8th solo record in about 20 years. She's averaged one every 2.5 years. This is her 1st in 4 years, but her 2nd in 6, her 3rd in 7 and her 4th in 10.
She calls her latest record Charmer, and so you Aimee Mann fans know that there's a song here about a fellow who takes himself to be a charmer but who fails to live up to Mann's expectations, in the tradition of "All Over Now," "Calling It Quits," "Driving Sideways," "Guys Like Me," "I Should Have Known Better," "You're With Stupid Now" and a dozen more. The record in fact opens with "Charmer" and, unfortunately, it's absolutely typical of Aimee Mann. That is to say, nothin' special.
In fact, the record only gets moving with the 3rd cut, "Labrador," which offers something a little different from Aimee Mann--that is, a sense of humor--where she compares herself, that is to say, the personna of the singer, to a "loyal Labrador," yes, the dog. "When we first met/I was glad to be your pet/like the lab that I once had/that we called Maisie/but fetching sticks/was the best I had for tricks/you got bored/you got mad/then you got crazy." Har, har. The bouncy melody admirably conveys the humor, a characteristic rarely seen in Mann's songs and so refreshing here.
But the 6th cut, "Living A Lie," is the centerpiece. It opens with a male vocal...who is that? That sounds so familiar...yes, of course, it's James Mercer of the Shins, and this sounds exactly like a Shins song only better than anything on their record from earlier this year. But now the record's got some momentum going. "Slip and Roll" and "Gumby" are catchy slower tunes, "Gamma Ray" a little harder-edged and finally "Red Flag Diver" closes things out pleasantly enough.
That makes 7 of 11 songs that are minimally "pleasant enough." Not bad. But records are defined not by their average quality but by their high points, and there's certainly nothing here on a par with Mann's best work--which means pretty much every other tune with Til Tuesday and likewise from her 1st solo LP Whatever. In the 21st century, her records were characterized by their best songs rather than by their consistency. "You Do" from Bachelor No. 2, "It's Not" from Lost in Space, "Little Bombs" from The Forgotten Arm, "Columbus Avenue" from @#%&*! Smilers (which I am told is pronounced Fucking Smilers, who says the girl's got no sense of humor, eh?). There's not a song here on Charmer in that class.
I mean, it's gotta be tough being Aimee Mann. The bar is so incredibly high. Charmer is maybe the 5th or 6th best of her 8 solo records. And yet, it's still one of the top 5 records of 2012 so far. Faint praise for Aimee Mann. For lots of artists, even good ones, this would be a career masterpiece.
Tift Merritt
Tift Merritt now has released 5 solo studio LPs in 10 years, plus 2 live albums and 2 EPs. Her 1st 3 LPs were all winners--Bramble Rose, Tambourine and Another Country. Her fourth, by contrast, fell flat.
Now she's back with Travelling Alone, which makes it a trend. Jerry Douglas' record this year is called Traveller and Kathleen Edwards' record was called Voyageur. This isn't up to those records but it kicks Tift back into the category of alt-country artists to keep an eye on.
Tift has written about 1 up-tempo song for every 2 or 3 ballads, and she's like Aimee Mann in that her up-temp tunes are more satisfying throughout. "Still Not Home" is built around a minimalist fuzz-tone guitar riff, and it's about as close to rock 'n roll as she's ever gotten, though the "guitar solo" is actually a pedal steel, giving it a little bit of country cred. And that's who Tift is, after all, alt-country. "Still Not Home" pushes the envelop just enough.
"In the Way" has a softer, more typical Tift Merritt sound, and ends the record on a nice up-beat: "One day, I'll never be lonely/Oh, yeah, it'll really be something/Turn around and nothing will be in my way/Clear as the day/I don't see nothin' in my way." Nice.
"To Myself" has that same rock 'n roll quality to it, including the fuzzy guitar. "Spring" starts out slow but builds up in intensity and in tempo as the electric guitar comes forward once again.
"Too Soon to Go" and the title track feature slower tempos but pleasant vocals. Tift is in good voice here. It's a slightly thin voice, but expressive, and she sings passionately. While all else is professionally done, it's her songs and her voice that are her primary appeal. She hasn't quite caught the inspiration of her 1st 3 records, but this is solid nevertheless and adds to a substantial body of work that makes her one of the top 10 artists of the 21C.
And while Aimee Mann's body of work is about twice as big as Tift's, Tift Merritt is in a little bit better place right at this point in time.
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