At 59, the Liverpool veteran's desire to explore remains undimmed. Here, he references his own past while luxuriating in the fatback funk and taut soundscapes laid out before him. Part sleuth, part paranoid doom monger and part world-weary prophet, Costello's many personae are given sharp new settings. His sometimes suspect vocals are in fine fettle ("Tripwire") and the edgy "If I Could Believe" provides illumination aplenty.
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