Savant Some More

Off of Joanna Newsom’s new album, Have One On Me, Good Intentions Paving Company is an epic tour de force.  With a shrill vibrato that ushers you seamlessly into the thick of the song, punctuated at times by building bass lines, you are cast under Newsom’s spell from the very beginning.  With every plunge and sudden turn of her voice, I am there with her.  And then, of course, the lyricism:

“And I regret, how I said to you ‘honey, just open your heart,’ when I got trouble even opening a honey jar.”

Pure poetic mastery, often times tongue-in-cheek and cutesy, making her all the more endearing for her musical levity.  No artist should take him/herself too seriously.  And to those who are put off by her vocals - just give it time.  But I would even listen to nails on a chalkboard if they wrote lyrics like Newsom. =:) Enjoy!

A.P.S. (Angry postscript) - UGH, and as it turns out, the audio file is too large.  Note to self, verify file size before writing paragraphs about an unusable song. Well, I’ll post another, smaller song off her new album, entitled ‘81.  I would recommend picking this album up - most songs are 6:00+ minutes long, dividing the album into three CDs.  Perfect for long-listens, imperfect for blogging.  Trust me, you won’t be disappointed. 

-Joe