There is a lot on this album to listen to. Johansson's voice is like a doleful ghost on Green Grass while the combination of the banjo and the little thumb piano kalimba sound the bones of some decomposed skeleton rattling around in the breeze. One of the best things about Tom Waits’ music is the deliciously weird and always tantalizing orchestration of his songs and that also stands out on this album.
Anywhere I Lay My Head
Johansson is joined by producer David Andrew Sitek and other first-rate musicians like TV On The Radio’s Jaleel Bunton and Tunde Adebimpe. Ryan Sawyer bows vibes and beats out rhythms on toms, dogs bowls and bells and Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs contributes on guitar. Even David Bowie joins in on vocals for Falling Down and Fannin Street.
But even though it is Scarlett’s record, and her name is on the cover she isn’t necessarily leading the band. Her deep, husky voice is a shadow at times. It looms dark and foreboding at one moment and creeps stealthily like a grave robber at another. This is not a solo record by any means. Anywhere I Lay My Head is a perfect example of the saying that the sum is greater than the parts. Much of this record is felt rather than heard. Listen closely for the dog bowl on Town With No Cheer.
Use of the Music Box
Together, the band creates a lush landscape full of strange and beautiful atmospheres. The instruments live on their own while being part of a larger scene. On I Wish I Was in New Orleans, the only instruments on this track are Sean Antanaitis’ home made music box and Johansson’s voice. This is probably the most remarkable track on the album. Anatanaitis punched over 300,000 notes into seventeen feet of paper and fed it into the music box, which he attached to a guitar and cranked away. It is ideas like that which are sure to do Waits proud.
And really, that is the theme of this record. There is a preponderance of originality and creativity nestled within Waits’ already painted tableaus. The most difficult aspect for the band to tackle must have been to stay true to the desultory, spontaneous yet coherent nature of the music while injecting it with their own voice. And they do indeed manage to carve out their own sound into the monolithic Waits juggernaut.
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