By now, if you haven't heard or at least heard of Elvis Costello, something is terribly, terribly wrong with you. Emerging as a part of the punk movement in the late 70s, Costello's combination of biting wit, sociopolitical consciousness, and his amazing songwriting has led to him being heralded by many as the best pop songwriter since the Beatles. The man once known as Declan MacManus has been blessing us with his musical offerings for over 25 years now, and has covered too many genres and topics to really count.
A mere year ago, Elvis offered us his so-called "rhythm record", reuniting with half of his former backing band, the Attractions, for When I Was Cruel. The album was released to critical acclaim, and to the acclaim of fans who had felt Costello had "softened up", pointing towards his Painted From Memory album, a record of orchestral pop ballads written with Burt Bacharach. Though, those fans may have looked past the fact that the songs were, in actuality, very well-written and still illicited Costello's quirky attitude, Cruel was still a welcome return to the realm of rock 'n roll.
North, like Painted From Memory, before it, and The Juliet Letters before it, is bound to dissapoint those fans who cannot accept Costello coming to them in an "adult contemporary" format.
The album gets off its feet with help from a string section, followed by the entrance of Costello's voice and Steve Nieve's piano, on the saddening track, 'You Left Me in the Dark'. Elvis accusingly claims "you left me standing alone, although, I thought that we could not be parted". The song doesn't sound like a typical Costello track, leaving a haunting impression on the listener, mainly thanks to Costello's ability to write a truly powerful song. By the second song, 'Someone Took the Words Away', I have already found myself with a complaint. Elvis has already committed overkill on his use of vibrato by the second song, which isn't a good thing. His ever-improving voice is sounding great on this record, don't get me wrong, but enough with the God damn vibrato. 'When Did I Stop Dreaming?' seems a bit more reminiscent of older Costello, it just has a more lighthearted feel to it, but it does run a bit longer than it probably should.
The wordplay and razor sharp puns Costello has become known for are scarce on North. There is a long span on the record of rather dull songs that feel so confined to and trapped in this crooner model, that I begin to feel claustrophobic. When I say "dull", I mean in the context of Elvis Costello's songwriting ability. These songs are still better than most stuff that will come out this year, but it doesn't really satisfy me to wholey as a big Costello fan.
At around the track 'Still', the album begins to leave its despaired beginnings, and begins to pick up a more hopeful tone, perhaps as Costello finds new love? The album's curtain call is the song 'I'm in the Mood Again', which is a well-written song, as are all of the songs on this record, but it basically stays within the same parameters as all of the other songs on North. If you purchase the album, you get access to the its title track. 'North' is a bit better than most of the other songs on the album, mainly because its melody is especially strong. Now, I was pretty dissapointed when I found out that the best song from the North recording sessions was left out of the record. 'Impatience' is a jazzier take on North's sound, and is probably the most relatable to Costello's older work. His humor and wordplay that has become Costello's signature, but is lacking on most of North hits with full force on this song. It's also probably the catchiest song of the bunch as well.
This isn't one of Costello's best records. If you haven't ever gotten into Elvis, North isn't going to be the tractor beam that pulls you into his realm. If you're already a fan of his, though, it's definitely worth picking up, and is an interesting side note in his career. Don't think this is a bad record, it isn't. Costello's unbelievable songwriting talent is present on this record, and his voice paired with Nieve's sparse but powerful piano playing definitely make for a good record. Try to pick up the import of North, though, since it has 'Impatience' on it. Having that song on there definitely brings up its quality. If you want to get into Costello, go pick up the recently re-released Get Happy!, it serves as a much more accessible entry point into Costello's work. I still have to admire the fact that Costello seems to pay little to no attention of what people have to say about his music, and will go in whatever musical direction he sees fit. That, among other things, is exactly why an album of crooning piano ballads manages to be more punk rock than anything on Fat Wreck Chords.
