• Reviews

• All
• Music
• DVDs
• Live
• Cinema
• TV
• Books
• Comic Books
• Video Games

Sep 26, 2016 Issue #58 - The Protest Issue By Zach Hollwedel

For die-hard fans, it has been four long years since the release of What We Saw from the Cheap Seats, Regina Spektor‘s sixth and most recent studio album. (Catchy as her intro to Orange is the New Black might be, it just doesn’t fill the void that a new album from the Soviet-born singer/songwriter does.) Fortunately, she’s back with Remember Us to Life, and right from the eminently catchy opening track, “Bleeding Heart,” it’s clear Spektor remains as versatile and open to experimentation as she is a talented lyricist.

There is something about Spektor that is inherently listenable—her voice is soothing and welcoming, but her lyrics often contain underlying hints of darkness, and the marriage of the two results in a captivating listening experience. Especially in the cases of Begin to Hope and Far (Spektor’s fourth and fifth albums, respectively), it was so easy to listen on a loop for hours. Remember Us to Life offers glimmers of that same magic, but ultimately does not exude the same mystique those terrific albums did. That is not to say it is without its standouts. “Grand Hotel” in particular feels like classic Spektor, as though it could have debuted on Begin to Hope 10 years earlier. A few tracks later, “The Light” is as poetic as Spektor gets—a beautiful, deep, haunting song about life and self-reflection. Likewise, “The Trapper and the Furrier” finds Spektor’s writing prowess on full display. However, she gets a little headier, a little grander and slower with “Obsolete,” one of the longer and less memorable tracks of the set, and it is not the only unimpressive song on the album. Remember Us to Life is a reminder that Spektor’s sound is uniquely—and unmistakably—hers and hers alone, and while it has its strengths, it lacks the punch of some of her earlier work. (www.reginaspektor.com)

Author rating: 6.5/10