The wait for a new Cat Power record was, in part, due to a relationship and a break-up, but fans’ first taste of Chan Marshall’s next “Sun” is more about travel than anything.
“Ruin” bops along to the sounds of the various countries to which Marshall’s travel — not the native styles of music, mind you, but the actual names of the countries. Can’t say I’m wild about the silly over-pronunciations of said countries, like Meh-heeko and Great Breht-ahn, but it’s a driving, cool-eyed song with a undeniable refrain.
Cat Power played all the instruments on “Sun,” and produced it herself too. Which is always impressive. She and her mixer kinda pulls the whole thing on “Ruin” back a bit much (around the 2:15 mark) but damn if she didn’t do a nice job driving the whole jangly, piano-rocking thing.
“Sun,” as previously reported, arrives on Sept. 4 via Matador. It’s the follow-up to 2008’s covers set “Jukebox” and the first set of originals since 2006’s “The Greatest.” Marshall explained to the Stool Pigeon recently that the wait was because she was working hard at making her relationship with her boyfriend — now ex-boyfriend and actor Giovanni Ribisi — work. But a woman who changes her hair changes her life: after years of also dabbling on the record, she split, three days later cut her hair mad short, and then went to France to finish this album.
“It”s all good, you know. I love the person very much. I actually love this record very much, too. I”m very proud of it.”
Looking forward to some quality heart-hurt.
Here is the promo video and stream of “Ruin,” tracklist for “Sun” below it:
1. Cherokee
2. Sun
3. Ruin
4. 3,6,9
5. Always on My Own
6. Real Life
7. Human Being
8. Manhattan
9. Silent Machine
10. Nothin But Time
11. Peace and Love