Everyone’s favourite Canadian singer song writer Neil Young, returns with second album of the year !I love it when some artists aren’t content to release one album a year. In 2014 there has been a slew of artists who have released more than one album. Neil Young now joins their ranks. This isn’t the first time Young has released multiple albums in one year. I’m not including live albums or parts of his archive series, just new studio albums. In 1975 he released Tonight’s the Night and Zuma. In 1989 he released Eldorado and Freedom. In 2006 Living with War and the stripped back version Living with war: In the Beginning (ok it was the same album twice, but both versions are different). And in 2012, Americana and Psychedelic Pill were released. Earlier in the year he released A Letter Home, recorded straight to vinyl on Jack White’s Third Man Records and this week see’s the release of Storytone.
Storytone is a double album, but has more in common with his album Living with War then Psychedelic Pill. The first disc is just Neil doing what Neil does best, singing and playing guitar: this is the sound of Neil baring his soul. On the single ‘Who’s Gonna Stand Up’ Young discusses his fear for the future of the planet, but at the same time, on a song like I Want to Drive My Car he still wants to drive his cars. For the first time you can hear the mortality in his voice, but you get a sense that he hasn’t finished creating, and the bigger message will be coming soon. The second disc is the same songs, but this time he’s backed by a 92 piece orchestra and choir (apart from three tracks where is backed by a big band). It sounds unlike anything that he’s released before. Rumour has it that during the recording sessions he sung in the same room as the orchestra and choir. How’s that for old school?
Individually both discs work, but during certain tracks I Want to Drive My Car and Say Hello to Chicago in particular, the collaborations grated a bit rather like cuts from the Are You Passionate album did. While this new sound is interesting, I’m not sure if it’s entirely successful. The intimacy and concern that bristles within Young’s voice on the stripped down versions, is sadly lost due to the grandiose nature of the backing bands here. Whilst it’s clear that Young is worried about the state of the planet for future generations throughout the album on these versions it sounds like he’s having such a blast with the orchestra that he doesn’t care as much. Sadly this was a good idea, but could have been executed better, maybe an orchestra running through his greatest hits as a bonus disc instead? Let’s hope there’s a Le Noise 2 or More Letters Home in the pipeline…
[Rating:3]
