Rating: NNN
Regina Spektor’s sixth album (fourth for Sire) is a combination of new songs and older ones that have been in her live sets for a while but not recorded in a studio till now. That leaves the mixed bag of quirky, big-production piano pop and slower, intimate ballads without a strong concept, but it still works.
Standout track All The Rowboats is different from the rest, an edgy minor-key attack on the collection and canonization of cultural artifacts, while world-poppy Don’t Leave Me (Ne Me Quitte Pas), with horns, marimbas, programming and backup vocals, is the busiest.
Spektor retains her unique Russian/Bronx accent and proclivity for vocal experimentation. But it’s the near-painful purity she conveys in the high notes that surprises most, especially on the mellower tunes.
Top track: All The Rowboats
