Tell Me How You Really Feel
Mom + Pop
2018
Rating: 7.5 stale chocolate pies out of 10
No jinx here, Courtney Barnett has followed up her excellent
solo debut “Sometimes I Sit And Think, And Sometimes I Just Sit” with an
equally good sophomore response. This
makes me happy for a number of reasons:
1. It’s
nice to finally be high on the new record of an artist I haven’t been listening
to for half my life or longer - which has been the case so far in 2018. Superchunk, Hot Snakes, and the Sea &
Cake have made my favorite albums of the year (so far), and all combined I’ve
been listening to these three bands for 67 years. By contrast, I’ve only known Courtney Barnett
for 2 or 3 (I got into her first record a little late).
2. I’m
glad to enjoy music by someone I would call a “popular” artist. I mean, she’s not Beyonce popular, but she
definitely has a certain cache – she’s been on Austin City Limits, Saturday
Night Live, and a bunch of late night shows.
I’m often befuddled at what people see in acts that reach this level of
cultural relevance, but not so with Barnett – the catchy, effortless songs she
writes have a way of worming their way into your head. There are a few others like Future Islands, War
On Drugs, and Wilco that I love that have also reached this same level of
success, but just like the bands mentioned in the first bullet point, I’ve been
with those groups for a long time.
3. It’s
always nice to find a new female artist I can really get behind. I don’t mean that to be as sexist as it
sounds, but ratio-wise there are just so many more male bands/performers out
there, and I can be rather picky. I’m
more than aware of how much I listen to (mostly straight & white) dudes,
but at the same time you can’t just make yourself like something for
demographic reasons – you like the music or you don’t at the end of the day. Luckily, digging Courtney Barnett comes real
easy.
