Album Review: Last of the Great Pretenders – Matt Nathanson
11 years ago Liv Carter Comments Off on Album Review: Last of the Great Pretenders – Matt Nathanson
Singer-songwriter Matt Nathanson returns with Last of the Great Pretenders, his third studio album with current label Vanguard. Feeling like the sonically logical progression from his 2011 Modern Love album, this is his most accomplished, expansive, and bold collection so far.
After the most attention-grabbing opening line I have heard in many a long day (I will leave it unmentioned to not spoil it), what follows is an exploration of human (dis)connection, of Nathanson’s own musical influences, and of his relationship with San Francisco.
“It feels like summer, but it’s earthquake weather,” he sings in the opening track’s chorus. The statement reflects the spirit of the entire album, as each song examines a shift in circumstances, not always for the worse. The U2-esque ‘Last Days of Summer in San Francisco’ is a highlight with perhaps the most made-for-radio chorus on the album. Lighthearted pop in the form of ‘Kinks Shirt’ and ‘Kill the Lights’ counter-balances more complicated tracks like lead-single ‘Mission Bells’ and the album opener. More sonic variety is added as he exchanges the punk-pop of ‘Annie’s Always Waiting’ for the catchy folk-rocker ‘Heart Starts.’ Two acoustic-based jewels juxtapose the energy of the record as ‘Sky High Honey’ has a sorrowful lover reflecting on happier times in Boston. Quite possibly the album highlight is the achingly wistful ‘Sunday New York Times,’ a confessional free from bitterness – “You and I were fighting sleep/Beautiful wasted promises we promised to keep/At least ’til we said goodbye/Sometimes you’re still mine/Between the lines of the Sunday New York Times.”
The best part about Nathanson’s songwriting – you don’t need to go mining for lyrical gems, they’re everywhere. I don’t think he’s ever constructed an uninteresting sentence in his life. He doesn’t qualify his metaphor-rich phrases with payoffs later, he simple respectfully assumes you are clever enough to keep up. With numerous references to planes, taxis, streetcars, subways and other transportation, his song’s main characters are always in motion, adding a restless melancholy to these stories.
What ties all these songs together is what is arguably the album’s central character, the city of San Francisco. Berkeley, Chrissy Field, the Castro district, Guerrero Street, as well as other landmarks, permeate the stories and bring the city’s vibrant personality with them. Though sonically diverse, the city turns this album from a song collection into a collective.
Much of the credit must be shared with Nathanson’s co-producers Mike Viola and Jake Sinclair. The production manages to be both playful and disciplined. From the percussive piano chords on ‘Earthquake Weather’ to the shimmering acoustic notes on ‘Sunday New York Times,’ each song gets the treatment its influence demands, while simultaneously blending and pushing at genre boundaries. Nathanson’s vocals are left quite unprocessed, resulting in an organic and sincere delivery.
With only a few minor missteps to quibble over, Last of the Great Pretenders, is a personal yet accessible album that will, without aiming to, find a wide appeal. Nathanson has found his stride as an album artist and delivers one of the most sparkling, intelligent, and affecting albums this year.
Enjoy a live version of ‘Sky High Honey’:
Liv Carter
She holds several certificates from Berklee College of Music, and a certificate in Positive Psychology from UC Berkeley.
Her main influences are coffee, cats, and Alexander Hamilton.
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