Aging

Album review

Aging is a bitch. Aging is lovely. The third solo album from the Broken Social Scene co-founder Kevin Drew wrestles with the hard truth of the inevitable, inspired by the passing of friends and mentors and declining health of close family. "Pain is a hard thing to let go until you're ready," Drew has said. "And that's kind of where I was at with this record. Music, for me, is a release …" "You're Gonna Get Better"—a tender piano ballad overtaken by a throbbing pressure—explores that weird feeling of wishful encouragement shadowed by doubt, as he alternates from "Think you're gonna get better/ Think you'll be back on your feet soon" to "I think the worst has left you alone/ We should do more together/ I can help you find your home."  "Party Oven" is more about what comes next, as he weighs the blessing and curse of memory ("With your daddy's mouth/ And your mother's ears/ Your crazy tongue/ And your childish fears/ I see you sometimes") and the feeling of survivor's guilt. "We partied into your grave/ Was that okay? Was that okay?" he asks, his voice plaintive and rising with genuine worry.  Drew seems keenly aware of the passing of time on "All Your Fails," the percolating rhythm keeps things busy as he barely pauses to catch his breath and shimmering bits sound the streaking whistle like a car speeding by. 

A more intimate affair than the work of that Canadian indie-pop supergroup, the record has a distinct kinship with the latest albums from The National. Metaphor-heavy lullabye "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" serves up Drew's voice run through an AutoTune-like filter, while he takes nearly two minutes—working up his nerve?—to sing on elegant "Elevators." But his raspy start grows more engaged, insistent even, as the strident piano and ambient burbling grow more energetic. And earnest "Out in the Fields" celebrates a joy of age: letting go of worries about what other people think. "People are so scared/ They don't know why they're scared/ So they try hard to act like they're not scared," he sings, "So you should roll out in the fields with your girl." He doesn't say it, but the implication is there: While you can. © Shelly Ridenour/Qobuz