CD Reviews

LEONARD COHEN
Ten New Songs (Columbia / Sony)

Now, from the outset I'm a huge Leonard Cohen fan, but putting on this record I must admit I got a huge scare. I'm not a fan of gospel music and this is what the start of the first song reminded me of - pure gospel. This is not what I was expecting at all, then Leonard starts singing and somewhat saves In my Secret Life, thank God for that voice or the disc would have been smashed against the wall. Is this what his record company thinks will sell this album? From now on in dear listeners the beautiful Leonard Cohen starts working his magic.

This is a musically minimalist record, simple melodies, rich keyboard bass, a feel of culture and the gutter, depressing and uplifting at the same time, a record of what the old bugger has been up to; hanging out in the mountains of Montreal to the islands of Greece, from crap hotel rooms to a monastery southeast of LA, well that's what his press release said. I'm thinking it's all true because this is a record of highs and lows and his voice is sublime, yes so enchanting that it makes me realise how much I've missed him in these last nine years.

What I think is so cool about this is that he hasn't lost any of the venom that made him a legend, check out the lyrics of That Don't Make It Junk, pure Leonard honesty, albe self loathing but he knows how to pull you into his world like no other. Love lost and love found and lost again is a recurring theme throughout this album but Here It Is describes it so succinctly it's enough to make you weep. By the Rivers Dark is classic Cohen, a song of that overwhelmingly foreboding feeling that surrounds us all when someone steals our loved one. There are not enough songwriters in this world that can write emotion with such purity and an acceptance of their own fallibility.

Ten New Songs is what I expected to hear from Cohen, yes somewhat smoother musically, but his voice has lost none of its charisma and his lyrics any of their passion and spite.
SKULLBEARD (beat Mag)