Stripping away much of the excess that cluttered
Punch the Clock and
Goodbye Cruel World,
Elvis Costello returned to his
folk-rock and
pub rock roots with
King of America, creating one of his most affecting and personal records.
Costello literally took on the album as a return to roots, billing himself by his given name
Declan MacManus and replacing
the Attractions with a bunch of L.A. session men (although his old band appears on one cut), who give the album a rootsy but sleek veneer that sounds remarkably charged after the polished affectations of his
Langer/
Winstanley productions. And not only does the music sound alive, but so do his songs, arguably his best overall set since
Trust. Working inside the limits of
country,
folk, and
blues,
Costello writes literate, introspective tales of loss, heartbreak, and America that are surprisingly moving -- he rarely got better than
"Brilliant Mistake," "Glitter Gulch," "American Without Tears," "Big Light," and
"Indoor Fireworks." What separates
King of America from the underrated
Almost Blue is that
Costello's
country now sounds lived-in and worn, bringing a new emotional depth to the music, and that helps make it one of his masterpieces. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
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