His voice spills out like overflowing ash trays, stale gin and chipped terra cotta tiles. Anders Osborne ain’t making excuses or offering explanations; he’s bleeding bits of moments, anchoring with tiny details and stubbed toe sentiments that bore into the core.
Label: M.C.
[Rating: 3.5 STARS]
Videos by American Songwriter
His voice spills out like overflowing ash trays, stale gin and chipped terra cotta tiles. Anders Osborne ain’t making excuses or offering explanations; he’s bleeding bits of moments, anchoring with tiny details and stubbed toe sentiments that bore into the core. Filigree piano runs, bass notes that ripple out and crisp cymbals lend definition, but mostly space for that world weary voice that has emerged from the muck philosophical and grateful for the ride to be Coming Down‘s most compelling instrument. “Lucky One,” which closes,” reflects on the misadventure and survival in spite of it, while “Oh Katrina” marvels at the way a place can facedown devastation with the grace of the Big Easy. A truly New Orleans texture, there’s a humidity to the spell Osborne weaves, capturing Garden District, French Quarter and Vieux Carre electricity in a few notes and images. Ribbons of vintage Randy Newman, midcareer Ry Cooder, a smoother-voiced Levon Helm, even strands of the rising tides of piano that gave Jackson Browne his lyricism and the downlone phonk of Dr. John’s gravel.
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