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Josh Rouse
Nashville
(Rykodisc)
First Appeared in The Music Box, April 2005, Volume 12, #4
Written by John Metzger
It’s a telling sign when an album by a singer/songwriter doesn’t feature a
transcript of his lyrics, and indeed, a close examination of the ruminations by
Josh Rouse on his latest outing Nashville reveals more than a few awkward
moments. That said, Rouse definitely has all the makings of an extraordinary
artist. Both his sense of melody as well as the atmospheres that he evokes are
positively sublime, and he certainly has a knack for threading his songs
together into a cohesive collection, while allowing the overarching theme to
serve as its title. Therefore, in the grand scheme of things, a few faulty
turns-of-phrase aren’t going to be enough to sink one of his efforts, and in the
end, much like its predecessors, Nashville prevails.
Throughout his career, which now spans five full-length studio outings, Rouse
has matured in gradual increments, slowly moving forward in his quest for
perfection. With the release of Nashville, one gets the sense that he,
just now, is beginning to hit his stride. In essence, the collection is both a
refinement and a summation of his life’s work, and it highlights just how far he
has come since he recorded his lo-fi debut. It also serves as a final farewell
to the city in which he has resided for the past 10 years, while the reason for
his departure — a marriage that came apart at the seams — provides a darker,
more personal undercurrent to the material.
Still, it’s the music that is most irresistible about Nashville, and
Rouse once again enlisted producer Brad Jones to assist him in building upon the
lush sonic terrain that the duo explored so fully on 1972. In short,
their arrangements are designed to capture specific moods and feelings thereby
allowing Rouse to further elaborate with unspoken eloquence upon the story that
he is trying to tell. Cleverly, Nashville is divided into two sides — a
concept that harkens back to the days of vinyl, but seemingly has been lost in
the digital age — and each has its own distinct flavor. The first — which
features the soaring strains of It’s the Nighttime, the shimmering Stone
Roses-meets-The Smiths groove of Winter in the Hamptons, and the
strangely delicious fusion of the Velvet Underground with Sonny & Cher on Middle School Frown — is bubbling with optimism and hope. The second — which
contains the piano-heavy sentimentality of Sad Eyes as well as the
bittersweet soul of Saturday — is bruised, battered, and brooding. The
dichotomy undoubtedly is meant to convey the emotional course of his romantic
pursuits, though on Life, the collection’s final track, Rouse embraces it
all with the sort of easy-going acceptance that comes from a guy who decided to
pack scant few of his belongings into a suitcase and move to Spain. 
Nashville is available
from Amazon.com. To order, Click Here!
For Canadian orders, please
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For UK orders, please
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Ratings
1 Star: Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!
Copyright © 2005
The Music Box
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