photo:
Roza Sampolinska
Boston indie singer Leah Callahan navigates between pop and art-rock on her new album Cut-Ups. It is a collection songs about relationships. The good ones ( Let's Go Dance) and the bad ones (Diabolique) are covered as equals, with lush '80s arrangements as she takes a scalpel to her love life, making small incisions with deceptively straightforward lyrics. The suicide of the very successful Cordelia is used as a wake-up call not to chase after fame at all cost, but cherish some kind of anonymity.
As a veteran of the scene - she was a member of Turkish Delight, Betwixt, and The Glass Set - she knows what it takes to make a mark, basking in the spotlights. She can be a self-deprecating Enfant Terrible or go all out with the ode to night life City Lights, when the possibilities seem endless and the hassles of everyday life take a back seat to living in the moment. On the album's sole cover, David Bowie's Look Back in Anger, Callahan sings both lead and backing vocals, just like her hero did. It is not a slavish reproduction, but a tribute to a man who has been ingrained into her musical DNA as a major touchstone for decades.
Leah Callahan: words, melodies, voice
Alex Brander: drums
Alex Stern: guitars and piano, arrangements
Richard Marr: producer/engineer
Cut-Ups is a self-released album (CD, digital). Buy it from her website. Release date: November 28.
Tracks:- Cut-Ups
- Another Day
- Let's Go Dance
- Diabolique
- Enfant Terrible
- Look Back in Anger
- City Lights
- Hoi Polloi
- Cordelia
- Edges and Lines
- 12/02 Cambridge, MA @ Plough & Stars
(album release show)
HCTF review of Short Stories.
