A collaboration between two Canadian rock totems,
Lustre Parfait
brings together the late
Gord Downie
, best known as the enigmatic frontman of
the Tragically Hip
, and superproducer
Bob Rock
, whose lengthy resume includes acts ranging from
Metallica
and
the Cult
to
Michael Buble
Ron Sexsmith
.
Rock
also produced a pair of albums for
the Hip
(2006's
World Container
and 2009's
We Are the Same
) and it was during this period that he and
Downie
connected to create this joint side venture. As the third posthumous release from
,
is unique in that is was recorded long before the singer's terminal cancer diagnosis and is therefore devoid of much of the existential poignancy of his 2017 swan song,
Introduce Yerself
, and its even more subdued 2020 follow-up,
Away Is Mine
. Instead, it's a mid-career romp of sparkling rock & roll heft, made by two friends who still saw a long road ahead. Begun in 2009, eight years before
's death in October 2017,
ripples with classic
Gord
energy, pairing his manic full-throated vocals and lyrical weirdness with
's polished hard rock melodicism. On "The Raven and the Red-Tailed Hawk,"
dances around the idiosyncratic, almost sing-song verses before roaring into a desperate chorus that leaves nothing on the table. Another standout is "Camaro," an improbable ode to the Chevy muscle car that doubles as a celebration of life and movement. With occasional soulful adornments and detours into husky power balladry,
is by and large a punchy rock-forward set and a welcome reminder of what a distinctive and undeniable presence
was in his heyday. ~ Timothy Monger