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Oct 02, 2023 Web Exclusive By Frank Valish

It’s been an up and down few years for Lydia Loveless. After she brought to light the harassment she faced at the hands of the domestic partner of one of her record label Bloodshot Records’ co-founders in 2019 and the fallout that resulted (additional accusations included that Bloodshot owed hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid royalties), the label ended up shuttering, leaving Loveless to go it on her own.

In 2020, Loveless (she/her/they/them) released her fifth full-length album, Daughter, on their own Honey, You’re Gonna Be Late record label. Aside from a few stand-out tracks, the album was not one of Loveless’ best, and they spending the next year largely free of touring (surely COVID helped in this).

Since then, however, Bloodshot Records was sold and resurrected, and with that comes Loveless’ return to the label. Their latest, fresh on the heels of the label’s reemergence, is Nothing’s Gonna Stand in My Way Again, back on Bloodshot. And the album finds Loveless also returning to the top of her craft.

The album begins with the short minute-and-a-half string-accentuated love song of sorts, “Song About You,” before kicking it into gear with “Poor Boy,” an up-tempo rocker that finds Loveless at the crux of another relationship quandary, lamenting that she needs to “clean up my mess and leave the poor boy alone” while also crying out, “But I wanna get in his head.”

“Sex and Money” (as in “all I think about is…”) is the type of existential crisis pop that Loveless has all but perfected over the years. And “Toothache” is organ-accented pop rock, complete with “woo hoo hoo” backing vocals.

“Ghost” is a beautiful track based on a wonderful conceit (“I wanna be the ghost that haunts your house”), its ethereal instrumental backdrop betrayed only by what sounds like cricket sounds that intermittently distract from the building emotional affect. “Do the Right Thing” is two-and-a-half minutes of Byrds-ian jangly guitar and “ooh-la-la-la” backing vocals. And “French Restaurant” is the catchiest break up song ever.

Throughout her career, Loveless has perfected the inward-looking and the brutally honest, always accentuated by a wry turn of phrase or with self-deprecating bite. From heartbreakers to rabble rousers, it’s intelligent, emotional music that the most jaded can connect to.

The album ends with the aching string-filled piano ballad, “Summerlong,” which finds Loveless torn between the longing for connection and the need to be free. They start, “When I wake up in the morning/I’m not ready for the lights/It’s been so long since I trusted the fall and just closed my eyes” in elegant voice over gentle piano. And then in the sum of three minutes, over building strings, they rise like a phoenix, Loveless singing, “I’ve already decided that I’ll be alright/I’m gonna fight with all my might to be kind tonight/It’s been so long since I’ve felt alive that it feels wrong/I thought about you all summer long.” (www.lydialoveless.com)

Author rating: 8/10