Though he's the producer of some of the most successful mainstreamalbums ever, Daniel Lanois' own music has been decidedly left ofcenter. On previous albums, he's made otherworldly sounds escape fromthe speakers, dancing and 
Save grooving on occasion with the needs of thehuman condition. As a producer, Lanois has always succeeded in bringingacross the best in any artist. On this, his first album for Epitaph'sAnti label, he finally succeeds in bringing out the best in himself. Itseems independent music is becoming more like independent film in thesense that the directors who make edgy films that garner notice but notan audience start making lower cost, artistic fare. Lanois, one of thekeynote speakers at SXSW this year, is the perfect front runner for asimilar movement for producer/musicians, and this album is a goodstart. The first two tracks, "I Love You," and "Falling at Your Feet,"are pure love, pure need, pure beauty. They feature Emmylou Harris andBono, respectively, so they are also the more mainstream songs on thealbum. This is perfect Lanois formula material: write the musicyourself, sing most of it, but bring in the heavy hitters to nail it tothe wall and make it art. After these two tracks, though, Lanois isleft to his own devices, where he's showed promise before but couldnever soar. Soar he does, and it's mostly due to the band. He has theright players in Daryl Johnson, Brian Blade, and Malcolm Burn, and hisvoice has never sounded so grounded and earthy. On the title track,"Sometimes," and "Slow Giving," he sounds like a minstrel with all hisdreams intact and the experience of the ages. The instrumentals showoff the musicianship that we're used to from his soundtrack work andguest work on other artists' albums, but there is a cohesion that wasonly hinted at before. The album is a real success for Lanois, andhopefully he can finally find the audience he deserves. Read More
