Lambchop - Damaged (City Slang)
4/5
By: Thomas Hannan
I'll structure this piece like Lambchop have structured 'Damaged' - i.e. with one moment of joy at the beginning and the end of the work, and a lot of confusion, mild indifference and spatterings of loveliness sandwiched in between. So here's your joy - flippin' heck, the opener here, 'Paperback Bible', is just about the most heartbreakingly beautiful thing I've ever heard! And it's written about nothing - it documents your average episode of a US radio show called 'Swap Shop' in which listeners call in and try to exchange unwanted possessions for things more to their liking. But that melody, and Kurt Wagner's voice... it's like my parents died on Christmas Eve and he's channelled them the next morning to deliver a message telling me everything's going to be OK. Except he's singing about trying to find a "twenty seven inch colour TV". Still, I'm in reams of tears here, seriously.
The rest of 'Damaged' was never going to live up to that (and it doesn't, well, not until right at the end anyway). But I'm almost not bothered if there are any other songs, because 'Paperback Bible' was so totally worth it. What we do get is consistently of a high standard, even if it only intermittently hints at reaching those highs we now know it can. What Lambchop do manage here remarkably successfully is to alter the listener's mood - you're made to concentrate on the inner workings of 'Damaged' even if you're not particularly taken with what's going on. It's mesmerising, even in its least invigorated moments.
A lot of this has to do with Wagner's voice, and the unhurried, contemplative feel it gives every bar of the album. You sit and wonder how strange it must be to ever hear him shout. At times, such as on the charming 'The Rise and Fall of the Letter P', his vocals are so soft that the words he sings are almost drowned out by the sound of the saliva in his mouth (which I swear we're treated to at times). In others, such as on 'A Day Without Glasses', with all its delayed guitar pluckings creating a delicately cute, sparkly aura, he sound so unquestionably wise, a man who's not only seen a lot but may have in fact seen everything - otherwise, surely, he wouldn't be able to sing in such a weary way?
But boy, is the rest of 'Damaged' samey. OK, this works better for Lambchop than it does for many bands simply because you can enjoy the mood of their record for what it is, relaxing and occasionally beautiful, without it expecting to really excite. But come the latter half of the LP, when the dynamic hasn't shifted once and a melody as alarmingly brilliant as the one on the opener hasn't been found since, I am in part longing for a few fireworks whilst my feet continue to tap. And whilst the delivered alt country musings continue pleasantly, I'm suddenly woken out of my gravel voice induced day dreams.
There it is! It's 'The Decline of Country and Western Civilization', and finally, Wagner sounds pissed off! He's ranting, but in this most brilliantly succinct and authoritative way, about how much he hates Pitchfork and their high horse and anyone who thinks they've not made a good record in ages, which sounds arse, I know - but listen to that tune! Listen! That, that's joy.
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