Thursday, April 30, 2009

Together through life

The New Bob Dylan album “Together Through Life” is a swirling descent into the shit -coated throne that proclaims to be today’s Rock and Roll. Bob Dylan is first and foremost a folk rock musician, but this album is a burlesque nightmare, sleazy and degenerate with a cackling accordion beating us all into submission, and, most importantly, far, far away. Bob Dylan is reckless as always, retching into the microphone off key about bleak relationships and his wife’s hometown, Hell.  Really, the reason this album is so good is because it has multiple levels of interpretation and so many eyebrow-raising moments.  At first I thought a frumpy old woman in a moomoo sitting outside of a café would listen to this album, but quickly this jolly and hopeful but kind of lonely and overweight dreamer turned into an alcoholic chain smoker waiting for someone to put her out of her misery.  The first listen makes you feel like Bob Dylan just wants to retire on a hawiian island because of all the quivering mandolins or he is hinting at Paris with the over use of accordion sounds. But after a while it starts to sink in that there is no hope- “Beyond here lies nothin.”

            Let’s face it, Bob Dylan has tricked is into listening to something completely counterintuitive and we have no choice but to reckon him a genius. He probably hopes that everyone will leave him alone after this one but that is never going to happen; it seems as if people will continue to respect the man and give him 5 stars as long as he produces, no matter what he egests.

 

 

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