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- Summary: The latest album for the producer/singer-songwriter features Marc Ribot and Jason Moran as guest musicians.
- Record Label: Anti
- Genre(s): Rock, Blues, Singer-Songwriter
- More Details and Credits »
Top Track
| The Man I Keep Hid | |
|---|---|
| Nobody knows the man that I keep hid Nobody knows the man that I keep hid He's raised my face like a pirate's flag Of any nations tattered rag Nobody... | See the rest of the song lyrics |
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Score distribution:
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Positive: 6 out of 9
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Mixed: 3 out of 9
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Negative: 0 out of 9
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Guitarist Marc Ribot flirts with a cornet, while Henry's sax-playing teenage son Levon makes an impressive debut. They play ballads, waltzes, and slow dances that give Henry's vignettes time to unwind, like weary travelers unpacking their burdens over cigarettes and gin.
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Ultimately, Blood from Stars is the most sophisticated, redemptive, and romantic album Henry's cut; the love songs are simply raggedly breathtaking.
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It’s that self-reflection, in addition to Henry’s already well-established storytelling abilities, that lifts Blood from Stars to a new place, showing us that just because Henry’s found his sound, he’s not going to stop looking for surprises.
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If Mr. Henry wants to suggest a less phlegmatic Tom Waits, as often seems the case here, he could stand to loosen up further. His lyrics can feel too artful, too self-conscious.
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These soulful laments and menacing gospel rumbles don’t really demand attention but reward it handsomely.
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That’s what’s frustrating here--although, like Waits, he’s obviously a truly poetic lyricist, the instrumentation is much more engaging than Henry’s placid voice.
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Levon coaxes an intricately textured tone from his saxophone on 'Over Her Shoulder,' but generally, Joe’s erudition gets the better of him on this strangely dim and twinkleless album.
Score distribution:
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Positive: 2 out of 2
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Mixed: 0 out of 2
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Negative: 0 out of 2
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DavidL.Aug 28, 2009
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JasonP.Aug 19, 2009My vote for album of the year. It's beautifully recorded, written, played and executed.
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