These United States

09.30.2008 -- Review by: Joe Koch

When A Picture of the Three of Us at the Gate to the Garden of Eden came out earlier this year, I wasn’t shy about sending up flags of preeminence. The reason it’s a great record is mainly due to its cleverness; the jaunty style of colliding folk and electronica is a near-perfect complement to Elliott’s cognizant writing that recalls the brio hyper-symbolism invoked by, er, one particular mid-60s songsmith. But A Picture has never been reflective of their live show, especially as their latest lineup features multiple guitars driving a more boisterous rock sound. I became comfortable with this dichotomy as I identified two distinct bands in my head – the “album tUS” and the “live tUS.” With Crimes, however, These United States proclaims a unified identity, one that effortlessly rocks the face while sneakily taunting the mind.

Crimes is indeed a rock and roll record. There are country tints in the steel flourishes and gospel notes in some of the balladic piano, but the overarching mood is one of raucous electricity. This fact hallmarks a departure for more than obvious stylistic reasons: although A Picture did display pieces of thematic continence, it was produced with different people at different times, leading to some natural discombobulating. Crimes, on the other hand, was recorded in a short period of time with clarity of direction. A Picture was a snapshot; Crimes is an album.

“West Won,” the album opener, provides the perfect segue between the two modes, as a bit of psychedelia and electronic sustain marks the first few seconds of the album, commencing a slow build that leads into the next two rolling tracks, “Susie at the Seashore” and “Get Yourself Home (In Search of the Mistress Whose Kisses Are Famous),” the first single. Following is “Pleasure and Pain and Pride and Me,” which I only mention because it’s my favorite track on the album. Next, though, comes “We Go Down to That Corner,” which brings up the other significant characteristic of Crimes: the expert balladeering that accompanies their electric crooning. Although songs like “Burn That Bridge” have certainly displayed Elliott’s knack for crafting an effective serenade, the aforementioned fifth track, in addition to “Heaven Can Wait” and “Study the Moon” prominently display a slow style that has evolved full-circle, adding depth and contrast to this rollicking country-rock train.

Overall – A

Elliott’s Cheshire cat vocals and hyper-literate wordplay have never seen more at home on stage or on wax that when supercharged by a lightning storm of musical prowess, which is exactly what the current, greatly talented, tUS lineup provides. The textures appear simple but are hardly so and the album moves with the grace of a measured classic, yet never loses the freewheeling atmosphere that has always made These United States so much fun to listen to.