With 2020's
Hate for Sale,
Chrissie Hynde steered
the Pretenders back into classic band mode. Its lean, no-nonsense production and back-to-basics arrangements (two guitars, bass, drums) suited material which was surprisingly vigorous. Many of those same traits can be found on
Relentless, another robust late-career set that exceeds expectations. While founding drummer
Martin Chambers is absent here,
Hynde's latter-day foil, guitarist
James Walbourne, resumes his role as co-writer, sideman, and sonic sculptor. Rounding out this edition of
the Pretenders is drummer
Kris Sonne, bassists
Chris Hill and
Dave Page, and keyboardist/guitarist
Carwyn Ellis. Veteran Welsh producer
David Wrench mans the boards. While the rugged rock & roll thump that characterized their previous release remains in effect on cuts like "Vainglorious" and the rousing standout "Let the Sun Come In," the whole of
Relentless is more varied. The midtempo "A Love" is a vintage
Hynde jangle pop gem with a memorable melody and the kind of idiosyncratic vocal timing that has always been one of her superpowers. "Merry Widow" is a spacious, slow-burning rocker that veers into U.K. folk-rock territory, with
Walbourne delivering a wild solo reminiscent of early
Richard Thompson who, incidentally, is his father-in-law. The album's more subdued second half gets a little sleepy with introspective acoustic-based songs, the best of which is the lyrically rich and Americana-tinged "Just Let It Go." Closing out the set is perhaps its least indicative track. Adorned with a celestial string arrangement from
Radiohead's
Jonny Greenwood, "I Think About You Daily" is an aching six-minute piano ballad that, while lovely, feels like it belongs on a different album. Then again,
the Pretenders and
Chrissie Hynde have more or less been interchangeable titles since the late '80s; at this point, a
Pretenders album is whatever she says it is and
Relentless is a good one. ~ Timothy Monger
![Rockstar [4 LP]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0843930095285_p0_v1_s90x140.jpg "Rockstar [4 LP]")
