Popular Problems
Leonard Cohen has never been one to put too much thought into his album covers - most of them just consist of a picture of his face - so it's no surprise that the cover of his new record looks like it was put together using ClipArt. Still, when you spend decades working on a single song, I guess you don't have much time left to worry about the packaging, and when the songs are this good, what does it matter what the album looks like? And the songs are great. Over his last three albums, Cohen has moved away from the dense, symbolically rich language that has been his trademark, and towards a sparser, simpler lyrical style more reminiscent of his poetry. Compare, for example, the following lines from "Sing Another Song, Boys" -
His fingernails
I see they are broken
His ships,
They are all on fire
The money-lender's lovely little daughter
She's eaten, ah she's eaten with desire
With the following, from Popular Problems' "Did I Ever Love You?" -
Did I ever love you?
Did I ever need you?
Did I ever fight you?
Did I ever want you?
Like Beckett, Cohen is condensing his language, trying to strip it back to the absolute bare minimum, and the same could be said of the production. Gone are the lush strings of Songs of Leonard Cohen, the synth-pop pomp of I'm Your Man and the jazz arrangements of Ten New Songs. Instead, the arrangements on Popular Problems are, for the most part, simple, to the point where - if not for the backing singers - this album sounds like it could have been recorded in someone's living room. In fact, I'm pretty sure some tracks were - there's one song in particular where the clacking of the keys on Cohen's electric keyboard is clearly audible. But don't think that that is a criticism - like the lyrics, the bare-bones production is that way because that's the way it should be, and what would sound half-arsed on any other record sounds perfect here. Simplicity is an art, like everything else - Len does it exceptionally well.
One of the best things about this album is the vocals. Since the '90s, Cohen has proven that he is one of the best vocalists on the planet, and his singing has never been better than now. Whether he's growling out the ominous "Nevermind" or singing the wistful chorus of "Samson in New Orleans," his voice is a formidable instrument despite - and because of - its limitations. From a technical point of view, he has the vocal range of a kazoo, but that's why he's so great - because he can't hit so many notes as other singers, he has had to become really, really good at the important part of singing - the emotion. And noone puts more feeling into a vocal performance than Leonard Cohen.
All in all, this is a great album.
Rating - 10/10
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