Bluesy folk rocker presents one of the top albums of 2003
By Erik Pepple
210 west Pop Culture Editor [send email]
M. Ward
Transfiguration of Vincent
Merge Records
Grade: A
While the entire world has seemingly gone moony for Jack White's admittedly considerable talent at making blues and folk rooted rock palatable for a good chunk of the population, an even greater talent, a guy named M. Ward, has been working the sidelines, creating a body of work that has a deep understanding and respect for Americana traditions. And unlike White, you don’t get the sense of cheeky irony that pervades his work. Ward writes with a genuineness and generosity of heart that is sorely missing from much of contemporary music.
Ward started with a stint in Rodriguez and then two years ago released his debut full-length, the excellent End of Amnesia. With Transfiguration of Vincent, however, he has stepped up and delivered one of the best records of the year-a stunning song cycle with one foot firmly planted in the dirt and honesty of the blues and country and the other foot in the surreal, rustic yarns of Tom Waits.
Tunes like “Sad, Sad Song,” are delivered with a Haggard grace. Built upon a bluesy groove and detailing one man’s journey to uncover the mysteries of love, it’s not all that impossible to imagine Howlin’ Wolf or Willie Dixon giving this a whirl at the height of their powers. And the album’s dabbles in pop, like “Vincent O’Brien” and “Helicopter” all find their soul in the blues tradition with lyrics that read like a brainstorming session between Waits and Raymond Carver. These are songs that have a superficial simplicity, a stripped down verbal economy that belies the emotional complexity bubbling under the surface.
Vincent also features a sublimely beautiful cover of one of David Bowie’s biggest hits, “Let’s Dance.” Scaling back the tune’s 80’s pop sheen to a delicately plucked guitar and hushed vocal, it becomes a gently remorseful song where the protagonist seems to finally find his footing-taking the bold step of simply getting up and asking a girl to dance, the smallest of gestures becoming the grandest of symbols.
The Transfiguration of Vincent is a remarkable and staggeringly original work, a record that firmly earns its place in the grand story telling tradition of the best blues and folk songs.