INDIGO GIRLS | POSEIDON AND THE BITTER BUG | FOR ART'S SAKE | DONNE TEMPO
Indigo Girls "Poseidon and the Bitter Bug"
By Christian TotoThe Indigo Girls remain a consistently melodic folk outfit more than two decades after its first chart hit, “Closer to Fine.”
The band’s latest, “Poseidon and the Bitter Bug” (Vanguard Records), doesn’t stray from formula. Crunchy lyrics. Soulful melodies. A few songs you won’t want to end.
Amy Ray and Emily Salier may follow different musical muses, Ray’s a little bit rock ‘n’ roll, Salier’s a bit more folksy. Together, they bring impeccable taste - and reliability - to their still flourishing career.
The new disk finds them independent once more, having separated from their last label after only one release (2006‘s “Despite Our Differences”). The behind-the-scenes shakeup won’t matter to hardcore fans, or even those just picking up a Girls’ CD for the first time.
“Poseidon” does takes its sweet time to find its rocking heart. The first two tracks, “Digging for your Dream” and “Sugar Tongue,” require patience.
“Dream” lets the duo’s voice overlap just slightly, creating a tension that gives the sweet song a much needed edge. And the group’s social conscience enhances “Sugar Tongue,” a tune with something to say, but not in the way one might expect, about war and global warming.
Even red staters will be too distracted by the soothing arrangements to put up an argument.
“Love of Our Lives” starts the album soaring. Ray and Salier blend their voices into one passionate cry while the rhythm section cradles their harmonies. It’s an atypical love song, one of many in the Girls’ repertoire of heartbroken and healing.
“Driver Education,” the most conventional rocker in the bunch, demands to be played with the car windows down. Too bad “I’ll Change” sounds like the kind of song the duo could write in its sleep. But the song’s generic appeal is an exception with "Poseidon."
“Second Time Around” could have been a blues number if not for the hopeful mandolin and harmonica work which brims with hope, not despair.
“True Romantic” does deliver on that promised bluesy edge, but it gets nudged aside by the cascading vocal work that rises up to cap the album.
Ray and Salier still famously work separately, then collaborate on the finished product. And Ray irregularly releases solo albums featuring her penchant for a harder edged sound.
Yet the duo endure, neither bowing to modern music trends or eager to shake up their formula beyond recognition.
“Poseidon and the Bitter Bug” finds their collaborations still bearing sonic fruit, their union a perennial treat for folk fans and rockers alike.