New Release Tuesday: Joanna Newsom

Joanna Newsom Have One on Me (Drag City)

Newsom's last release, Ys (2006), was a dense, difficult record. Though respected by many, it seemed as though her work required a certain patience and willingness to immerse in another universe entirely. On Have One On Me, she's equally brave, other-worldly and obtuse, but between the three discs she also manages to dip into some of the most accepting and inviting compositions we've heard from her yet. There's an openness to this record, a general spaciousness that makes her Kate Bush falsetto-warble the delicate instrument it deserves to be. "Easy" and "'81" are both stand-out tracks, and the easy-going ramble of "Good Intentions Paving Co." is definitely a song to return to again and again. By the third disc, she's stretching out into territory she's more comfortable with (songs that last longer than five minutes with bizarre structure), but it's there that the theme of love and loss really comes to fruition, recalling hints left earlier in the record. Listeners who have found her a difficult case in the past might just find something to connect with on Have On One Me, we certainly did.

Joanna Newsom [Drag City]

Stream the record at NPR.

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