Catherine Irwin - Cut Yourself a Switch
(Thrill Jockey)
Janet Bean and the Concertina Wire - Dragging Wonder Lake
(Thrill Jockey)
Although Cut Yourself a Switch, the first solo record from Catherine Irwin of Freakwater fame, was released last October, it was damn near impossible to find out there, in non-cyber world. It's a shame, too, because it's been good from the first listen. If you have never heard Freakwater, you might want to give this a second chance before forming an opinion. Irwin's voice is an acquired taste, like single malt scotch. It doesn't go down easy, but you get a fondness for it soon enough and then you crave that smoky burn. She cackles, croons and cracks throughout the twelve tracks, of which only two or three are mediocre, and those are covers.
Irwin plays guitar and banjo and is joined by David Wayne Gay, also of Freakwater, on bass. They have been playing together for such a long time, that they sound seamless. Her banjo playing on the Elvis cover, "Power of My Love," is eerie and sparse; more fitting to the lyrics than the over-the-top original. Irwin's own lyrics are up to her standards. On the third track, "Hex," she sings about placing an ex-lover under a spell, "Will you know, or must I tell you / This is my lover's spell you have fallen into / My dear / My voice is all you'll hear." Her subjects on Cut Yourself a Switch range from heroin addiction to childhood memories.
The first track, "Needle in a Haystack," has a mournful fiddle and seems a maudlin beginning, but it is about heroin addiction. It doesn't get much cheerier from there, I'm afraid. "Cry Our Little Eyes Out" is about death and that's followed by the uneasy "Hex," which is as American gothic as End Time's "Cloak of Frogs." Irwin covers the Carter Family's "Will You Miss Me" and makes you forget about the original. Oh, and that is also about death. The last two tracks are the only two that didn't ring true. "The Only Hell My Momma Ever Raised" is that Johnny Paycheck song. You remember, you've heard it by accident on the AM station. "You Belong to Me" is slightly better, but when the other three covers come off so smoothly, it gives pause. Perhaps I never liked those two songs anyway? Regardless, I can't stop playing this CD.
The last member of Freakwater, Janet Bean, (also of Eleventh Dream Day), released her first solo record on April 8th, Dragging Wonder Lake, also on Thrill Jockey. There is no denying that Bean has a sweet voice, however, it does not mean that everyone will enjoy this new album. Eleven of the thirteen tracks sound so similar. They're slick, jazzy torch songs with accomplished musicians. Track #4, "One Shot" has a Howe Gelb feel to it that works for Bean. Track # 5, "Cutters, Dealers, Cheaters" has a Western influence with pretty disturbing content. It seems to be about self-mutilation or hard candies? "It's sharp and hard and cutting through / Her scars are made with a very simple tool."
It might provide good background music if your parents were coming over to visit and you didn't want to offend them. Or to hear her play at an upscale lounge while you try to choke down a martini. While you might be able to appreciate what she is trying to achieve, it is difficult to see where she is going with this. I just felt that I wasn't mature enough to get this yet.
Be prepared for a seventh Freakwater album on Thrill Jockey sometime in 2003.
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