Originally written for Expository Writing on October 3, 2007.
With the recent release of The New Pornographers' album Challengers, the timing seems right to make a confession: I enjoy Neko Case's half rock, half bittersweet country band more than The New Pornographers, an on-again, off-again group of which she is a member of. That's not to say I don't love The New Pornographers' sugary sweet power pop. I remember fondly the spring weekend in middle school that I spent napping on a blanket in my backyard while listening to Mass Romantic, their first album, on repeat. That weekend was an important turning point for my musical tastes. As I have grown up, so have The New Pornographers. Their latest album has a new sound that shows greater maturity and seriousness. Challengers’ new sound may eventually change my mind, but for now Neko's hauntingly beautiful lyrics and strong thematic albums connection with me emotionally more than The New Pornographers scattered, jam session-esque power pop.
With Neko Case's band, the instruments fill in the few gaps left by her singing. Neko Case is a mixture of blues, folk and pop. With piano, acoustic and tenor guitars, and a single back up vocalist, Neko Case makes a stark and spacious sound. The music fits the message of each song, upbeat during her rare positive songs and haunting during her more common dust bowl ballads. Her somber folk sound reminds me of a lonely fall morning, whereas The New Pornographers' bright pop reminds me of a bright spring day.
A stark contrast to Neko’s open sound is The New Pornographers' army of electric guitars, organs, hand claps, and tambourines. Where Neko's band makes sure to give her words and voice plenty of space, The New Pornographers crowd in their many, many instruments right beside their three lead singers. In a way, The New Pornographers use their instruments to make their music like poetry. The words are not what convey the meaning of the song; instead, the band uses an overall explosively happy sound to get the meaning across. It isn't what the song says, it's how the song feels. The trick is that, like poetry, the vague feelings conveyed by The New Pornographers won’t be appreciated by all. However, the haptic, sugary staccato of the band's songs are capable of making any ears smile. Though the mass of instruments limit The New Pornographers to a certain niche in the emotional spectrum, they can certainly make listeners feel warm and happy inside. In this regard, The New Pornographers have a niche, but fall short of making the same deep emotional connection that Neko's soulful croon can.
Neko Case's lyrics give her songs great meaning. Considering how powerful and raw Neko's voice is, a focus on the vocals and lyrics of her music makes sense. Though a Neko Case album with nonsensical lyrics would still be worth the purchase due to her unparalleled vocals, her deeply moving lyrics take her songs closer to perfection.
Neko Case's first major solo album, Blacklisted, was released in 2002. At that point, she was still developing as a songwriter. Her songs were personal, but almost alienating to the listener. Luckily, “almost” doesn't count in the music industry. Blacklisted reveals a very vulnerable lead singer. Fans are told of her fears about love, success, and, in the very personal “Deep Red Bells,” of her experience witnessing a gang shooting in Chicago. Amidst such sadness, Neko's crooning voice comforts us, saying that despite all there is to be afraid of, there is still mystery and kindness is this world. Her lyrics in Blacklisted tell the listener of a myriad of fears and personal experiences, but at the same time remind us that Neko is just starting her musical career, at times by being too personal and at other times by being cliché in her subject matter.
Neko's second major album, Fox Confessor Brings the Flood, that was released in 2006 shows a great leap forward in Neko's lyrical prowess and her abilities as a storyteller. Fox Confessor is more focused than Blacklisted, and gone are the personal love songs. Instead, Neko plays the role of the omnipresent storyteller, basing her album around a folktale about a fox. By making her songs into stories and fables, listeners can more easily relate to them, and apply them to their lives. The sadness, beauty, and mystery remain, but lines found in Blacklisted like “When the new crowd starts to bore you/Just remember there is someone to adore you/ Look for me, I'll be around” are replaced by “Girl with the parking lot eyes/Margaret is the fragments of a name/Her bravery is mistaken for the thrashing in the lake.” The more poetic imagery, coupled with the over-arching story makes for a sophisticated, but focused album. Where Blacklisted's lyrics are emotional but scattered, Fox Confessor's lyrics are a storytelling masterpiece.
In stark contrast to Neko's emotional, heavy lyrics are The New Pornographers' meaningless hooks. The New Pornographers' albums have almost no understandable lyrics. That isn't to say the vocals are muffled or hard to hear; they are hard to comprehend. One of the more lyrically focused songs, “Jackie,” is most coherent near the middle, in which the three lead singers proclaim: “So visualize success, but don't believe your eyes/There's a world of wisdom and pain to despise/When people get paid just to set you straight it means/Are you gonna start the sunshine?” In fact, in Mass Romantic the only understandable line is a reference to Joni Mitchell found in “Letter of An Occupant,” the only song on the album written by Neko Case. Often, The New Pornographers spend all of their energy making sure their lyrics are catchy and hook filled, and therefore have no energy left to make sure their lyrics mean anything. This isn't to say that The New Pornographers produce vapid songs that make no connection with the listener. Far from it. I've never seen someone listen to a New Pornographer song without having a powerfully positive emotional reaction. But the lyrics simply aren't the focus of the group. They use their instruments and music to create a connection with their audience, whereas Neko Case uses her band to support her lyrics.
However, The New Pornographers' latest album shows a deviant from the pattern. After three albums, and seven years of amplified sublime happiness, Challengers is a more subdued, serious work of a band. Throughout The New Pornographers' career, its members all belonged to other bands, only getting together for a few weeks every so often to jam and release tension. Though this “group instead of band” mentality gave The New Pornographers their unique blissful pop, it made the group unfocused and unable to develop a deeper connection with their listeners. With Challengers, lead vocalist Carl Newman takes reign of the group and transforms them into a band. However, this is not without a cost. Sure, Challengers has lyrics of a much higher caliber than previous albums, but Challengers is also The New Pornographers at their most subdued. For a band that is defined by their own careless, joyful pop, moving to a more serious sound has turned away many long time fans.
Despite the reaction of many fans, I find this latest album to be part of a wonderful progression. The album is more lyrically focused, like Neko Case's band, but remains happy and frantic like The New Pornographers I grew up with. Because of this, Challengers is a great compromise for my musical tastes. The album shows The New Pornographers at their most stripped down and polished. The vocals are given more space, but without dimming the incandescent guitars and synthesizers. The songs written by Carl Newman show maturity and a desire to be taken seriously. Challengers still has a few power pop hits like “All The Things That Go To Make Heaven and Earth” and “Failsafe,” but for the most part this album goes for a new sound that hits the head as well as the gut. This kind of progression is welcomed. After all, if I want to listen to their old sound, I can always listen to one of their past three albums.
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