Review Summary: Ché Aimee Dorval takes listeners to a simpler time and place, helping Townsend deliver on his promise.
After reading Devin Townsend's comments that he made an album of "haunted Johnny Cash songs," one may have a hard time envisioning what he means. After listening to Casualties of Cool, one realizes he means exactly what he says. Casualties of Cool has all the ingredients of a classic country-western album, yet the dark, ambient noises in songs like "Mountaintop" fill up the aural range with a spookiness that draws one deeper. The concept, per Townsend, revolves around a traveler who is in on a distant planet, but also in the midst of confronting personal demons. Without having any back story, listeners can easily feel this perforating off of the music while listening through.
There is a calculated barren, airy tone to the album, though the mix is remarkably full and intricate. Though the album seems stripped down and minimalistic at points, subtle varied instrumentation, such as saxophone work on "Moon," never allow the album to stay too simple for too long. When someone writes a film about a classic cowboy's adventures in outer space, they will already have their soundtrack lined up.
Dorval's range is superb, and her writing is crisp, clean, and simple. "Bones" really shows off her full range, and her voice compliments the aesthetics of the album perfectly. Nothing on the album feels overdone or excessive. And though there is a diverse range of sounds throughout, one never takes the album for disjointed or disorganized. There are moments that the classic country motif seems to fade, such as in the tribal, trance-like "Hedja," but the album immediately bounces back to one of its most outlaw-like licks in "Forgive Me," the very next track.
In short, Casualties of Cool was one of the most pleasant surprises of the year thus far. Despite the classic sound of the songs, it will be hard to come across something remotely similar. If Dorval and Townsend decide to continue, this album will be a tough act to follow.
