Hip-D Top 20 of 2006 » #16 » Jenny Lewis with The Watson Twins - "Rabbit Fur Coat"
With the release of Rabbit Fur Coat, Rilo Kiley vocalist Jenny Lewis issued an often highly personal solo debut, which tackled her confused and frequently conflicted views on, among other things, religion and parenthood.
Opening acapella "Run Devil Run" segues nicely into "The Big Guns," perhaps the most immediately ear-catching track on the album, and one which would sit happily on a Neko Case LP. "Rise Up With Fists!!" exudes more of a languid swagger than one might expect from its angry sounding title, before the hushed ballad "Happy," that, while hardly spectacular, drifts by with a delicate charm. "The Charging Sky" is a loping country tune full of befuddled religious indecision, while washed-out glissandos of synth add an ephemeral, floaty air to "Melt Your Heart."
The title track, composed simply of a plucked acoustic guitar and vocals, tells the slightly surreal, yet poignant, tale of an estranged mother, one of a number of mentions of the artist's parents. A strong last quarter of the album includes "It Wasn’t Me," a soft, twinkling ballad, simultaneously wearied and uplifting, which perhaps produces some sort of conclusion to Lewis’ thematic, album-wide dilemma (“I’ve gone and quit my worshipping of the false Gods and golden sins.”) and a distant sounding reprise of "Happy."
Released only a few weeks into 2006, Rabbit Fur Coat set the bar high for those following her.
-- Darrin Frew
Darrin Frew's Favorite Track: "The Big Guns"
This album appeared on the following staffers's lists:
- Darrin Frew (#8)
- Patrick (#9)
- stacey (#15)
by Bob Bland | 12/16/2006 05:55:00 AM
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