In A Bathroom Stall Off The National MallThings I love about
Picaresque, track by track.
The Infanta—the sheer spaciousness of it, the galloping rhythm. Makes me think of the final battle scene in Return of the King, with those elephant things. I know I’m a geek. More rock songs need shofars (but not in a Jethro Tull flutey way)
We Both Go Down Together—the violin just weaves in perfectly, especially in the tiny coda with the shakers and the prickly guitar notes. Dual (underage?) suicide!
Eli, The Barrow Boy—Rachel and Colin’s voices blend perfectly here. Could be an old folk tune.
The Sporting [Lust for] Life—the next person who disses Rachels’ drumming shall get my cleats up their bum. Horns and banjo add to the awesomeness! More rock songs need tambourine breakdowns!
The Bagman's Gambit—everyone talks about how theatrical The Mariner is, but this is the dramatic moment for me. The gentle strumming in the verses contrasted with the loud shreddy bits is spine-tingling. Is this another of those "Cold War spies compromised by their gay love affair" sort of songs so popular these days?
From My Own True Love—maybe because it’s a grey and cold day here, but this song so amazingly captures a feeling/atmosphere/lack of central heating I had goosebumps on my hairy arm. People are saying it's weak, but they haven't listened to it right after coming in from a cold and sloppy bike ride. Do that, then we'll talk.
16 Military Wives—since I first heard this on live tapes from going back to October 2003 it has captivated me. The warbly guitar (is that delay?) is like aural body surfing. Now that I’ve seen the video I must stop Henry Stowecroft at all costs! Even though the lyrics say nananana, everyone knows it’s la di da di da.
The Engine Driver—The extra guitar that you hear in the empty spaces at the beginning is way cool (for lack of a better term). Again, Rachel’s pipes. And Chris Funk!
On the Bus Mall—channeling the spirit of Stephen Patrick Morrissey. In a very old interview the old bard of Manchester talked about how he liked to go from the utterly mundane to the totally seedy in the space of one song. From rat-trap motels to furtive fellatio, in this case. Also, I love how Engine and this are attached when stupid iTunes doesn’t blend them for you on playback. Right after hearing this it would be good to hear the Morrissey EP.
The Mariner’s Revenge—isn’t this an old seaman ballad from 1793? It should be (and that’s a good thing). It’s like Barry Lyndon meets Pinnochio and Jonah. The spinny waltzy at the end is very nice, too. Make me miss Rachel as a bandmember. But she (and Adam) can always be found in Norfolk & Western, and, right now, out on the road with that M Ward fellow.
Of Angels And Angles—like fine filigree lace, or dewdrops in spiderwebs. It doesn't make sense, per se, but it does somehow capture something.
The overall lushness of the production says, “Listen to me with really good headphones.” You’ll hear a voice whispering while Rachel sings on The Mariner, which adds to the creepiness. All sorts of stuff is happening in the loud parts of Bagman. I know some think that the sparseness of
Castaways is the ideal, but the arrangements and production here are perfect. It really is an amazing thing to hear. Lauran even likes it.
EDIT: not all the girl parts are sung by Rachel. But I wish they were.
