That’s the first thing that comes to mind whenever I hear Neko Case’s voice, which really does qualify as a unique instrument. Smoky, pitch-perfect, emotive, and with seemingly limitless range- Neko Case’s vocal chords are more powerful than a third world country.
Case was born in Virginia. This is a fact that many seem to have forgotten, as people have often simply stated that she’s Canadian. It’s an honest mistake. After all, she did spend a good portion of time living there, and was quite involved in the Canadian indie rock scene. The New Pornographers, the Canadian indie rock “supergroup” of which Case is a member, could be evidence enough of her talents. After all, they recorded the song “Letter From An Occupant,” one of the finest indie rock power pop gems in recent memory. There are many reasons why “Letter From An Occupant” retains status as a modern classic: the crunchy guitar work, the infectious rhythm section, and the unbelievably fun “woo-oo-ee-ooh” chorus. And of course, there’s Neko Case’s amazing and powerful voice. It’s hard to tell, from listening to any of her songs with the New Pornographers, that she rose to prominence as a country singer.
Her voice just commands that much versatility. 2004’s The Tigers Have Spoken showed us that her voice is just as striking in a live setting. Even when she’s singing backup vocals on various New Pornographers songs, it’s always evident that her voice adds an extra dimension to the record. Early on in her solo career, she was renowned for being a superb interpretive singer, especially when covering classic country songs as well as country songs by little-known artists. Gradually, with each new solo release, Case began to incorporate more and more of her own songs into her work.
Fox Confessor Brings The Flood, her latest album, and first album of new studio material since 2002’s Blacklisted, finds Case in full singer/songwriter mode; she wrote or co-wrote all twelve of the album’s songs. The enigmatic title only hints at the heart of the album itself. Some of the songs seem almost like confessionals, some of them bring on a flood of emotion. Others sound simply foxy. Or perhaps Case herself, the foxy-haired maven, is the Fox Confessor, bringing forth a flood of new songs. Or maybe I’m just pushing it; she’s had a history of animal themes in the past (The Tigers Have Spoken, a canine on the cover of her 2001 EP Canadian Amp; even the liner notes to this new album are filled with animal references) and maybe she simply enjoys the imagery of the words.
I really should rescind that statement that Fox Confessor Brings The Flood brings a “flood” of new music. Not only is that a terribly unimaginative attempt at a pun, but it’s also slightly misleading. The new album clocks in at just about 35 minutes; it’s not very much of a flood by most standards, but even 2002’s Blacklisted was only 40 minutes. Those of us who still love the LP as a principle, however, would do well to remember that it isn’t only quantity or length that determines greatness. All great albums aren’t just collections of a bunch of good songs; they are singular, unified statements of artistic vision in which length is allowed the latitude to be an afterthought.
Listening to this latest release, the progression between her albums becomes evident. Her second album, 2000’s Furnace Room Lullaby, brought a modern lyrical sensibility to traditional country music. (Read: vintage country in the spirit of the greats like Johnny Cash, Hank Williams, Emmylou Harris, et al). It also proudly showed its country roots in a musical sense, just as much, if not more so than other alt-country albums from artists like Lucinda Williams. Blacklisted was in a similar vein, albeit with even more influences from other forms of music, such as pop, blues, and even some jazz. In addition, the arrangements on Blacklisted tended to be even grander.
Fox Confessor Brings The Flood finds the return of virtually all of these characteristics. All of the songs were co-produced and co-mixed by Case. Accompanying her on the album are various musicians from bands like Calexico, the Sadies, the Band (of Bob Dylan fame), and more. The arrangements are lusher than ever, but still retain a very personal feeling. Neko Case continues to prove herself to be a distinctive lyricist. Perhaps most importantly of all, her voice continues to stun.
“Margaret Vs. Pauline,” the album opener, is immediately accessible. The song is rife with interesting imagery, interchanging poetic sentimentalities (“girl with the parking lot eyes”) with concrete visions (read on). Stripping away the subtleties, the song is basically about the differences between poor and rich (Margaret = Poor and Pauline = Rich). At the end of the song, when Case sings, “Two girls ride the blue line / Two girls walk down the same street / One left a sweater sitting on the train / And the other lost three fingers at the cannery / Everything’s so easy for Pauline,” you can’t help but feel some pain at the general injustice and cruelty of the world.
On “That Teenage Feeling,” Case’s voice soars unimitable heights as the music reaches a crescendo. The sparse “A Widow’s Toast” shows that her voice can carry a tune just as beautifully when the instrumentation is minimal. “John Saw That Number,” a traditional gospel tune Case adapted, sounds somewhat misplaced in the sequencing of the album. However, it does inspire me to clamor for a gospel covers album. Johnny Cash did it, so I’ll keep on dreaming. “Maybe Sparrow” shows off some indie rock influences on its cuff, and finds Case in a particularly evocative, even fiery mood. Elsewhere, “Lion’s Jaws” tells an affecting tale of seduction. It’s hard to think of other artists who can make seduction sound more touching than teenage love, but somehow Neko Case’s voice can do anything she wants.
The final song on the album, “The Needle Has Landed,” is the final standout in an album full of standouts. A melancholy, if slightly obtuse musing on a past relationship, the song certainly epitomizes the heart Neko Case’s music: beatific, prone to fits of melancholy, ponderously deep, and wrapped around her one of a kind voice. Like most great songs, it’s music that is simply from the heart, utterly genuine and oppressively sincere.
If Fox Confessor Brings The Flood were recorded by another artist, it’d still be a significant achievement. With Neko Case’s voice, this is an album that people will be listening to and talking about for years to come. If this album doesn’t gain Neko Case more fans and recognition, then I won’t be able to help but feel some pain at the general injustice and cruelty of the world.
"Fox Confessor Brings The Flood" is on sale March 7, 0006 from Anti.
