Lou Barlow
's 2021 album
Reason to Live
begins with a glob of analog cassette noise and some vintage four-track murk, and for a second, one wonders if
Barlow
followed the lead of
John Darnielle
of
the Mountain Goats
, who after years of working in upscale studios returned to his trusty if wobbly-sounding boombox to record 2020's
Songs of Pierre Chuvin
. Turns out that's not quite the case, as the fidelity of "In My Arms" improves noticeably a few moments later. But if
has better gear at his disposal today than when he launched
Sebadoh
at the end of the 1980s,
shows he hasn't lost touch with the aesthetic that informed his classic early work.
recorded
at home, tackling all the vocals and instruments himself (except for drums on one track), and he remains utterly unafraid to show himself emotionally naked to the world.
in the 21st century is a more confident and better-adjusted man than he was in
's salad days of the '90s (which is good, since he's a husband and father of three as of 2021), but he's as impassioned as ever, and his testimonies to the life-changing power of love, and the anxieties about a world in a frequent state of crisis speak of a greater maturity while addressing the concerns of the same soul. (And "All You People Suck" bridges the gap between old
Lou
and current
very well.) One of the genuine upsides of improved home recording technology is that
allows us to better appreciate the simple but effective construction of
's melodies, as well as his inspired approach to homebrewed arrangements and production, all of which quietly shine on this material. And his singing here is as good as it has ever been, just measured enough but never unsure in its message or emotions. While there are plenty of fans who would like to see
pull that old four-track cassette deck out of mothballs,
demonstrates the folly of that thinking, as
is still in touch with what was best about his old work while maturing in the ways that truly matter. ~ Mark Deming