Now and then Chuck Prophet has an early Nick Lowe vibe going on, and sometimes he’s more like Lou Reed. The songs on the San Francisco-based musician’s 13th album have hooks aplenty, witty lyrics and a laid-back groove. Prophet tosses off lines with natural cool, especially on standout opener Countrified Inner-City Technological Man and the street-glammy first single, Wish Me Luck.
It’s a surprise, then, when the former Green on Red member (best known for influencing Nirvana and Pearl Jam) gets a little maudlin halfway through. Lyrics on the stripped-down They Don’t Know About Me And You are uncharacteristically on the nose (usually his observations bring to mind a less surreal Robyn Hitchcock), while several other songs get overly -orchestral. Sometimes the strings work really well, though, like on Lonely Desolation, fuelled by plucked violin.
Prophet’s desire to understand and disentangle himself from this anxious world we live in never seems less than genuine.
Top track: Wish Me Luck
Chuck Prophet plays the Horseshoe Sunday (November 9).