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KEYWORDS: Mark Lanegan Band, Blues Funeral, Jim Murray, STACK, essential, guide, JB Hi-Fi online, mag, magazine, jb stack mag jbhifi release date jb hi fi reviews, features, articles, jbhifi exclusives, music, australia, new zealand, vinyl, CD, music, jb hi-fi now, downloads
The ever productive Mark Lanegan returns with his first solo album since 2004’s Bubblegum in fine form. Opening with the southern gothic lament of The Gravedigger’s Song, the album continues in this vein, with Lanegan’s rich timbre anchoring the bluesy swagger of Riot in My House and the psychedelic desert rumble of former band mates QOTSA (Josh Homme contributes to Blues Funeral) never far away.
Ode to Sad Disco is a standout – Ultravox synth moments laced with mournful guitar lines.
Lyrically, Lanegan invokes Leonard Cohen’s world-weary refrains, lurching from defiance in confronting his mortality on St Louis Elegy – “yeah woman, house of cards/ frame of bones, yeah I’m earthly bound/said hallelujah I’m going down” – to seeking redemption on the Joy Division meets Depeche Mode elegy of Harbourview Hospital, lamenting“the devil’s ascended/and bought some crystal wings”.
His musical exploration sees synths and compressed horns added to the primordial psychedelic and orchestral overtones, his trademark deep vocals resigned to the hand he’s been dealt in life, only to suddenly offer hope amidst despair.
Lanegan’s at the height of his songwriting powers: even when budget/resource limitations become occasionally noticeable, the sheer strength of the songs and arrangements make this remarkable.
- Jim Murray
• Brought to you by: Remote Control/Inertia • STACK Genre: It's Only Rock'n'Roll
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#1. the great boo
Had a few reservations when I heard all the programmed beats and his voice is still just a ragged whisper.... But , after a few listens I've decided this is cracking. Maybe even his best record (his bands included); Tiny Grain of Truth is a beautiful closer.
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Mark Lanegan Band: Blues Funeral
Reviewed by Jim Murray on .STACK Magazine Review - Mark Lanegan Band: Blues FuneralSTACK reviews new album "Blues Funeral" by Mark Lanegan Band, in-store at JB Hi-Fi.Rating: 4.5
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Subject: Mark Lanegan Band / Blues Funeral