Marnie Stern

Marnie Stern

(Kill Rock Stars)

Record Review by Adam McKibbin

Much has been made of the significance of eponymous, non-debut albums.  Sometimes they are signposts of changing tides (Metallica, Liz Phair).  Sometimes they are pitched as a return to roots (Pearl Jam, the second and third Weezer).  Sometimes people are trying to say “hey, this album is the real me.”  Sometimes they probably just can’t think of a good title.  While it’s probably true that her new album is her “most personal,” Marnie Stern doesn’t fit neatly into these categories; maybe it’s just partial overcompensation (or penance) after an album called This Is It and I Am It and You Are It and So Is That and He Is It and She Is It and It Is It and That Is That.  If there’s a departure on Stern’s third record, it’s that her most accessible music yet, and could open a few more doors from the blogosphere to the mainstream.  But since Liz Phair is mentioned in this paragraph, perhaps a disclaimer is necessary:  accessible, in this case, does not equate to empty or ordinary.  Quite the contrary.  Stern is still the same bold, unique voice that she was when she made such a splash in 2007.

Without a lyric sheet or press kit in front of them, listeners may miss out on some of the lyrical heaviness of the album; opening track “For Ash,” for all its cascading energy, was inspired by an ex-boyfriend’s suicide.  There’s certainly no mistaking the musical heaviness from Stern and returning champion Zach Hill, who produced again – and brought his ambitious A-game to the drumkit.  Virtuosos both, they have a push-and-pull chemistry that should be the envy of most of their peers.  There are shifts in tempo, but hardly any dips in momentum as Marnie Stern tears and stomps through its brisk runtime.  Best of all: the rampaging “Cinco de Mayo.”