Recorded with producer
Alex Newport (
Death Cab for Cutie,
Frank Turner),
Yellow Coat is singer/songwriter
Matt Costa's second album for
Dangerbird Records and sixth overall. A warm, often bleary, reverb-washed record, it features performances from touring musicians and friends, but its inspiration was distinctly solitary. Somewhat atypical of a breakup album, the resulting dozen songs look broadly at love's ability to both comfort and devastate. More in line with expectations is a melancholic cloud that sits over even livelier tracks, like the vintage Motown-inspired (and likely
Richard Swift-influenced) "Savannah." Upbeat and uptempo but with heartbroken lyrics, the track's echoing atmospheres showcase a melodic bassline that cuts through rattling drum kit, haunted backing vocals, honking baritone sax, and even
Costa's raspy lead falsetto. Like much of
Yellow Coat, it's a feel-good tune despite lines like the repeated "I loved you like my own though I never never never could make you mine." Elsewhere, "Slow" recalls
Sam Cooke, not only with its nostalgic vocal melody, but with its slow-dance, triplet bass-and-piano rhythms, and dreamy, atmospheric depths. Even the minimalist ballad "Last Love Song" has
Costa and his acoustic guitar accompanied by a ghostly backing choir, lending a hymn-like quality to a song that was written as an anniversary gift, only to have its lyrics updated for the album.
Yellow Coat closes on a likewise-bittersweet note with the pairing of the brightly folky, midtempo "When the Avalanche Comes" ("You can make it but don't ask why/Some live and some fall and some die") and "So I Say Goodbye," a musically jaunty, piano-based track with a summery melody and lyrics that "â?¦say goodbye to you/Just a slide show in my mind/Watch it as it flickers by on by." Together, they make for a solid set equally well-suited for summer drives or broken hearts on the mend. ~ Marcy Donelson
![The Lonesome Crowded West [Bonus Track]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0767981144627_p0_v2_s90x140.jpg "The Lonesome Crowded West [Bonus Track]")
![A A Deeper Understanding [Digipack]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0075678660634_p0_v2_s90x140.jpg "A A Deeper Understanding [Digipack]")