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There are a few truths that I have come to know in life…
some with a universal certainty, some simply as personal things
that feel right. One thing that I can certainly tell you is a
universal truth: Mike Doughty rules. There is no other
musician on the planet with the poet's soul that possesses Doughty's
every word and phrase. There are others who try to groove the
way that Doughty grooves, but none that can make it seem as effortless
and grand. Does everything the poet touch turn to gold? Perhaps
not, but his success percentage is tremendously higher than his
peers.
Doughty starts his new album with the heart-wrenching "Fort
Hood", a track about the perils and costs of war. It is a
dark subject, but somehow Mike turns the dark to light and incorporates
hope into his track, infusing it with strains drawn from the 60's
hit "The Flesh Failures Let The Sunshine In)." It's
cool. On the enigmatically honest "I Just Want The Girl In
The Blue Dress To Keep On Dancing" Doughty reveals his innermost
stage thoughts with the cool swagger for which he's come to be
known. This song is instant classic material, with brilliant beeping
keyboards underscoring jazzy rhythms and stop-n-go guitar playing,
all to the tune of one of the catchiest and most memorable songs
Doughty has ever written. "Put It Down" is a logical
continuation of the Haughty Melodic sound, and features
the kind of ambling syllabic redundancy that finely enhances the
poetry of the man who once was Soul Coughing. And speaking
of which, shades of Soul Coughing past come out cleanly on the
short break-beat trippiness of "More Bacon Than The Pan Can
Handle."
A bit on the disappointing side is the remake of the incredible
"27 Jennifers," originally released on the Rockity
Roll EP. While the new version rocks it out quite a bit harder,
features great rock guitar work and edgy drumming, it loses its
acoustic sincerity and quirky beauty. The song is good, but for
those who've been singing along to the older recording for some
years, the track leaves a bit lacking. The album then lifts back
into jazzier and more laid back territory with the ballad-y "I
Wrote A Song About Your Car," which features some great Stevie
Wonder-style keyboards and brilliantly groovy drumming. Doughty
relaxes into an acoustic, moody talking blues on "I Got The
Drop On You" before dropping into the slow jam of "Wednesday
(No Se Apoye)," a track where the drums build a low drone
and the electric pianos jingle through a bit of welcome darkness.
"Like A Luminous Girl" slowly builds the record back
up to make way for the truly shining vibe of "Nectarine (Part
One)". This track captures the loose beauty that Doughty
has brought to his live performances over the past few years,
with chiming electric piano and rollicking drumming keeping the
song moving a pace while the vocals creating that charmingly Doughty
thing they do so often. You know, that thing.
By the time "Navigating The Stars At Night" starts
its dynamic strains, filled with heavy synth pads and reverby
guitars, Doughty has once more established his place in the world
of modern music. The bleak and hopeful poetry of the track runs
the point home that you've just experienced a phenomenal album,
and you are in the midst of perhaps the most incredible track
yet. The sonic characteristics are deep and rich, the lyrics captivating
and compelling, the guitars building to and receding from a feverish
pitch, while some very cool synthesizers keep things otherwise
interesting and theremin-like. The truth all lies in this one
song if there was any doubt up 'til this point. Mike Doughty is
cool. Tell your friends; experience it for yourself. There is
a healing and transcendent power in great music, and there is
no greater music to be found than on Mike Doughty's Golden
Delicious.
-Embo Blake
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