REVIEW: The Old 97s, Fight Songs (Elektra)
- John Davidson
What's happening to the alt.country thing? Uncle Tupelo disappeared in 1994. The Jayhawks' Sound Of Lies in '97 was a brilliant love letter to Big Star. This year, Wilco culminated their indifference towards anything country with the magnificent Summer Teeth. With beacons of "No Depression" seeking such lush pop fields, it's not much of a surprise to see another one of their kin, the Old 97s, wandering in a similar direction on Fight Songs.
That's not to say that the scorched bluegrass flavorings and old-school country heartbreak have disappeared on Fight Songs; they've merely become influences, instead of foundations for song structure. The rugged backbeat on "Jagged," the twinkling banjo on "Lonely Holiday," even the fuzztone lead over the bouncy 2/2 in "Crash On the Barrelhead" showcase the band's ability to borrow country elements without bowing down to the Grand Ole Opry. Better still, when the Old 97s dive into pop, they step over the edge and don't look back. "Oppenheimer" gleams on a rootsy guitar and bell tones. "Nineteen" is a pretty straight forward rock song, and the first single "Murder (Or A Heart Attack)" could fit on any modern rock playlist. The Old 97s are adept at knowing when to twang a steel guitar and when to cruise on a sugary pop idea.
If anything, Fight Songs could use a dash of edgy intensity. Although the feisty Bloodshot label years are gone, there's still nothing here like "Time Bomb," the blistering lead-off from 1997's Too Far To Care. Songs seem a little less urgent, a little less willing to transcend the smart lyrics of singer/songwriter Rhett Miller. The result is that lines such as "It's a lonely, lonely feeling when your valentine was wrong" (from "Valentine") lose some ache in the laid back delivery. The passion seems content to hide behind the words, afraid to become vulnerable in the context of the love-hurt stories.
So, maybe it's because they're getting older, or maybe it's just the need to artistically mutate. At any rate, the cowpunk days of the Old 97s are fading, but the mellowing of their tone offers maturity in place of fire and brimstone. Fight Songs wraps a smooth pop blanket around country loneliness and hopes for another chance at happiness. While drifting from their roots, the Old 97s don't seem too worried about what musical category they land in. They simply made a great album of songs from the heart, and beckon their past to follow.
