Review Summary: I followed your bread crumbs. They led to the sea.
Jenny Owen Youngs' 2005 debut,
Batten the Hatches, was a dark piece of sultry, acoustic indie-pop that was brought to life by her achingly sarcastic wit; case in point its lead single “F
uck Was I”, that made its way on to the Showtime primetime hit Weeds. The Jersey born singer/songwriter's follow up album, 2009's
Transmitter Failure, sees her taking her heart-breaking numbers to a wider audience, tossing her acoustic to the wayside and plugging in to the power grid. The results are spectacular. With a little help from producer and multi-instrumentalist Dan Romer, who flushes out the songs with illustrious strings, accordian, and various other instruments, Jenny Owen Youngs' amped up transformation from coffee shop acoustics to rocking power pop is a hit. Even though the style has changed, everything that was so endearing about Youngs is still intact. Lyrically, she has never been stronger. “Here is a heart. I made it for you so take it,” sings Youngs in the laid back and gentle hush of “Here Is A Heart”, “Battered and braised, grilled and sautéed Just how you like it,” she continues, making full use of her charming wit. It's lines like that, and there are plenty of them, that make
Transmitter Failure such a pleasure. “Last Person”, the second single from the disc, is the best song Youngs has penned in her career, not to mention it is one of the catchiest god damn songs of the year. Her delightful story of the awkward politics of the barroom pick up is set to a backdrop of jubilant guitar driven pop, culminating in a sugary sweet chorus that could be marketed as the cure for depression.
Transmitter Failure is bound to open up all sorts of doors for Jenny Owen Youngs. With the exception of Regina Spektor's latest,
far, there is nothing that even comes close to Youngs' sophomore release in the world of female fronted pop for 2009. It truly is a treat.
The music video for "Last Person" can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLsV1IWB8nY
