[ad_1]
Madison, Wisconsin (AP) — “World Record,” Neil Young (repeat)
Neil Young and his longtime band Crazy Horse are back on a favorite topic with “World Records,” a pun on the title of an album that focuses less directly on the fate of the environment.
This is Neil Young, 76, in full earth/grandfather rock mode. While it could easily turn into a wacky rant, “World Record” is actually more of an optimistic exhortation.
“Love the Earth/We can bring the seasons back,” Young sings on “Love the Earth”, “Love the Earth/Can you imagine?”
At the heart of the 10-track series is a 15-minute “Chevrolet,” a reflection of famed gear chief Young on his changing relationship with cars in the face of climate change.
“How will it comfort me / Burn all the fuel again?” he sings nostalgically on the heavily distorted lead guitar and signature Crazy Horse vocals. “The congested highways are gone / the roads we have left are gone.”
For more than half a century, Young has been celebrating the fate of our world in the face of climate change, global economic forces and environmentalism. He sang Mother Nature on the run in “After the Gold Rush” in 1970, and in recent years his message has become more urgent, direct, and at times awkward—see “The Monsanto Years” in 2014.
To keep things fresh, Young and Crazy Horse recorded the “world record” live in the studio, without any instrumental consideration. The end result, co-produced by Rick Rubin, is undeniably esoteric for Young, an artist who revisits common themes but doesn’t seem to do it in exactly the same way every time—for better or worse.
For more AP Music reviews, visit: https://apnews.com/hub/music-reviews
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. all rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
[ad_2]
Source link