At times associated with Buffalo’s Righteous Babe Records, Erin McKeown has been compared to fellow singer-songwriter and Righteous Babe
founder Ani DiFranco. Using multi-tracked vocals throughout her new record in a
strategy reminiscent of She & Him or late-period Elliott Smith, she carries
with her the songwriting chops of Aimee Mann and the whimsy of Mann’s longtime
producer Jon Brion.
McKeown also seems to have a serious interest in philosophy and
politics, launching lyrics meant to challenge established notions of nearly
everything. Her alternately
matter-of-fact, sarcastic, and jazzily melodic voice moves with a rapper’s
precision, spitting rhymes in rhythm that dissect the failings of our culture
if not the entire human race. Ample wit may often trump wisdom on Manifestra, but the searching quality of
the lyrics is still captivating beyond mere cleverness. Her repetition of the
simple question “Did we really crash?” at the end of the flawed but thoughtful “In
God We Trust” is unsettling and effective.
Though the potency of her music and the tameness of Manifestra’s production does not always
support McKeown’s lyrical bite, her voice is so varied, expressive, and
likable that it is easy to forget the derivative demons some of the album's
tracks struggle with. There is enough light experimentation and genre-mixing to
redeem the record from its slouch toward the adult contemporary. For an artist
labeled by some as “folk,” Erin McKeown rarely dips into folksy instrumentation
or song structures on Manifestra,
carrying more of a spiritual folk ethos than a musical interest in the
tradition. She demonstrates non-folk influences more often than folk ones, playfully
utilizing other styles with colorful results.
The white girl gospel gamble of the breakdown in the center
of “That's Just What Happened,” framed by a brooding blues, is as unexpected as
it is wonderful. Similarly, the enchanting guest musicians on the two
surrounding tracks make the record’s three closing songs the strongest of the release. Manifestra, which feminizes the male
ending of “manifesto” in its title, implies a perspective on the world that is
entirely the musician's own, a perspective that McKeown delivers with a fanged glee
as she swings her voice at society's ills.
Grade: B
Good Review! I will be referencing it next week in my New Music Tuesday post!