Iggy Pop is a rock legend. Whatever your musical preferences, there isn’t any use in denying it. With ‘Post Pop Depression’ positioned as his last hurrah expectations are understandably high, particularly as recent albums, such as 2009’s ‘Préliminaires’, failed to hit the spot for those craving the Iggy of old, despite having their own understated charms.
That’s not to say that we want to see him smeared in blood and spent, as was often the norm back in the days of the Stooges, but we do want to know he’s going out with fire left in his belly. ‘Post Pop Depression’ leaves no doubt that he does, and also that Josh Homme was the perfect partner to help him channel it into an outstandingly eclectic album.
Opener Break Into Your Heart is only a taste of the intricate instrumentation and composition that is to come. Gardenia, with an intro reminiscent of The Smiths’ How Soon Is Now?, is led by its bassline as Iggy opts for spoken word delivery in what is perhaps an acknowledgement of his love for Allen Ginsberg and the Beats.
There was bound to be a track that reflects on the singer’s history as he approaches 70 and American Valhalla takes care of that.
Valhalla, for those not familiar with their Norse mythology, is the hall to which certain fallen heroes would ascend. Iggy’s interpretation isn’t too far removed. “Death is the pill that’s hard to swallow,” he sings. “Is anybody in there? And can I bring a friend?” Later, he adds: “I’ve nothing but my name.”
Where American Valhalla tackles time, In The Lobby touches on relevance. “It’s all about the edge, it’s all about the dancing kids, it’s all about sex,” Iggy declares as an infectious guitar riff spars with a meandering bassline. This kind of thoughtful scoring is rife on the record, from perfectly timed handclaps to pizzicato strings.
Vulture, in a similar fashion to its namesake, gets down to the bare bones from the off with only Spanish guitar accompanying Iggy’s gravelly tones. It’s later fleshed out to evoke images of the band’s surroundings at their Joshua Tree recording camp.
The closer, Paraguay, sees Iggy give his full and uncensored commentary on the current climate, which has clearly left him exasperated: “See I just couldn’t take no more, of whipping fools and keeping score. I just thought ‘well fuck it man, I’m gonna pack my soul and scram’.” Though the words depict an ugly truth, their musical accompaniment and a capella introduction, which finds Homme and Iggy vocally on par for the first time, paint a much prettier picture.
In addition to elements from Homme’s accomplished musical repertoire, ‘Post Pop Depression’ also benefits from the input of Dead Weather guitarist Dean Fertita and Arctic Monkeys drummer Matt Helders amid slick production. The resulting record is one of impressive calibre, the likes of which has not been seen for a while. And, if we're being honest, probably won't be again.
Iggy Pop Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Fri May 13 2016 - LONDON Royal Albert Hall
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