Review of North
Cleveland Free Times, 2003-10-01
- Kurt Hernon
ELVIS COSTELLO
North
(Deutsche Grammophon)
* (one star)
The demise of the cassette tape ended the reign of what was perhaps
the greatest form of populist record criticism ever to have existed:
the car stereo with cassette player. With an unflinchingly swift push
of a single button (commonly labeled "eject") an offending
cassette could, in one dramatic and fluid motion, be removed in less
than a second and, with a good flick of the wrist, be out of the car
window and gone from your life. Just like that--instant rock criticism
(no wonder so many Night Ranger cassettes could be found curbside throught
the '80s). And if done right, the move could easily be personalized,
adding a nice touch of flair, or a "voice" as we say in the
writing biz, to your contempt.
Alas, the CD era has come along and ruined the entire process. Not
only have CDs doomed us to a full 75 minutes or more of playing time,
but CD stereo systems are just too damn slow with the "eject"
feature (mine timed out at a full four seconds!) to effectively express
your disgust with a particularly offending slab of music. And for that
reason alone, Elvis Costello's North, another one of those nearly insufferable
pop "experiments" by the form's reigning mad doctor, remains
in my possession. Because had we still been living in those heady days
when cassette tapes ruled, North, a collection of show tune-type songs
adorned only by piano and Costello's patented wordiness, would certainly
have found itself skipping happily along I-90, doing roughly 65 m.p.h.
--Kurt Hernon