Rolling Stone review of North

johnfoyle · Post by **johnfoyle** » Mon Sep 22, 2003 3:44 pm

see
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/newsar ... ?nid=18713
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Elvis Costello
North
Deutsche Grammophon

Having reinstated his rock & roll credentials last
year with When I Was Cruel -- not to mention getting
inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame -- Elvis
Costello characteristically makes a dramatic stylistic
turn on North. The album is filled with haunted,
piano-centered ballads and elegant string and horn
arrangements that tease out subtleties in the songs'
already understated melodies. Costello's singing is
quiet and controlled, an intimate voice describing an
emotional journey from abandonment ("You Left Me in
the Dark") to a renewed commitment to love ("Let Me
Tell You About Her"). North exudes a consistent,
subdued beauty that, at times, is almost too delicate
to make a true impression. Despite its intelligence
and musical sophistication, the album floats by on a
breeze so light that it risks escaping notice; the
songs disappear into the air before the listener can
discover a way to inhabit them. There's an undeniable
pleasure in that effort to grasp this music and its
meanings before they fade, but at times you can't help
wishing they were less evanescent, more substantial.
ANTHONY DECURTIS

selfmademug · Post by **selfmademug** » Mon Sep 22, 2003 5:01 pm

Ahhh, good ole piece-of-shit Rolling Stone, the Playboy for the seventeen and under crowd in the male species (they read it for the articles). I would ask how many stars but I soooo do not care. For them, that's a damned sophisticated review.

cbartal · Post by **cbartal** » Mon Sep 22, 2003 10:12 pm

Not a fan of RS either, but having not heard the album yet (till tommorow) I must say it sounds fairly accurate based on the summation of all I've heard from various reviews, including those on this board, which I consider the most important.

Sour Milk Cow · Post by **Sour Milk Cow** » Mon Sep 22, 2003 10:33 pm

cbartal wrote:Not a fan of RS either, but having not heard the album yet (till tommorow) I must say it sounds fairly accurate based on the summation of all I've heard from various reviews, including those on this board, which I consider the most important.

I agree. It's actually a much more thoughtful review than most of the UK papers gave "North." I think this critic actually captured the way this album has struck many fans on first listen, and rather than just dismiss it the way the Observer or London Times did, he seems to be curious enough to give it a chance.

Actually, I just checked RS's website-- they've been pretty kind to Costello in their reviews, even recent ones.

WIWC - 4 stars
For The Stars - 4 stars
PFM - 4 stars
ATUB - 4 stars
KV - 2 stars
BY - 3 stars
TJL - 4 stars
MLAR - 3 stars
SPIKE - 4 stars

I realize these are all from different reviewers, but it's a more solid track record than I would have expected. In particular, his recent run of 4 star reviews, from ATUB to WIWC and even including the Von Otter album (!) is pretty impressive.

I don't read the magazine, however. Too much like MAXIM now. I liked it better in the 80s.

johnfoyle · Post by **johnfoyle** » Wed Feb 22, 2006 3:02 pm

The newly revamped 'official' site has a selection of extracts from reviews of albums , including 'North'. Judge for yourself how selective by seeing - above - the review this is from -

North exudes a consistent, subdued beauty . . . There's an undeniablel (sic) pleasure in that effort to grasp this music and its meanings before they fade . . .
Record Review / Anthony Decurtis, Rolling Stone / 16 October 2003

Poor Deportee · Post by **Poor Deportee** » Thu Feb 23, 2006 11:43 pm

RS routinely gives Gillian Welch 2 stars. Meanwhile acts like Madonna routinely get 4.

'Nuff said. Whatever they say about EC, who cares? You might as well listen to a donkey breaking wind.