"Hello, Hi"

Given how prolific is and how diverse his body of work has been -- he's run the gamut from the no-quarter hard rock assault of 2012's to the smooth, faux '70s sound of his score for the documentary -- it's getting hard to keep track of what he hasn't done so far. One thing he doesn't do very often is turn down his amps, so it's news that he's giving that a try on 2022's This isn't the first time has eased up on the muscular side of his rock & roll, but feels intimate in a way that's new and fresh for this artist. recorded in his home studio and handled all the vocals and instrumentals himself. Though he kicks out some big, noisy jams on the title cut and throws some saxophone wailing into "Saturday, Pt. 2," for the most part this feels almost pastoral, a set of introspective melodies where he gives himself room to bare his soul, work out some classic-era folk-rock chord structures, and multi-track his vocals into lovely, pensive harmonies. (He also indulges in a bit of American Primitive-style acoustic guitar in spots, suggesting he's been listening to and liking it.) One of the best things about 's body of work is that no matter what he's doing, he sounds committed and heartfelt, and that's very much the case with He's a solid rhythm section as well as a fine guitarist, supporting the melodies with just enough color and movement to push the songs forward, and this isn't the work of a rock dude who picked up an acoustic guitar for a few hours, but a multi-faceted artist who likes to switch things up on occasion and happens to do it well. Since releasing in 2010, has been one of the best arguments against the lie that rock & roll is dead, and reveals that even when he's playing quiet so as not to wake the neighbors, he's still keeping it alive, and if you need some music for a quiet morning, this will ease you into the day quite nicely.~ Mark Deming