RUFUS WAINWRIGHT
Release the Stars
Universal
· Thanks to producer Neil Tennant of Pet Shop Boys, crooner manages to strike a heartfelt chord while staying true to his speakeasy roots.
The first time I heard Rufus Wainwright was five years ago at Mac Hall when he opened for Sloan. He bored my socks off. So, it was with some trepidation that I pushed play on his newest album Release the Stars. However, by song two I realized that this wasn’t the same Rufus that I saw droning on over a piano at the University of Calgary.
Gone are the slow, sombre songs from our first meeting years ago, in their place are the lively melodies of "Rules and Regulations" and the title track "Release the Stars." Possibly due to the influence of executive producer and former Pet Shop Boy, Neil Tennant, everything on the album is more fun and diverse, than I ever would have dreamed.
With Release The Stars, Wainwright shows tremendous range, moving from intimate crooning to big-band numbers without missing a beat, all while staying within the kind of smoky ’30s sound that would fit perfectly behind a Humphrey Bogart monologue in a seedy speakeasy.
There are still ballads and heartfelt lyrics, some of which are decidedly sombre. What there aren’t, are tracks that you will want to skip. From the quirky silliness of "Tulsa" to the political messages of "Going to a Town," to the sparseness of "Leaving for Paris No 2," every track brings something to the party and this time I’m not leaning on the wall waiting for the real show to start.
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