Act Of Faith: A Brief Review Of Reason To Live, The New Album From Lou Barlow (Sebadoh, The Folk Implosion)

In some small ways, Lou Barlow made the pandemic year bearable for indie heads. From his casual-as-could-be live-streams, to his generous offering of pay-what-you-want material on Bandcamp, the Sebadoh guy seemed to be sharing with fans the fruits of a creative spurt in a lifetime of them. His newest solo record, Reason To Live, out this Friday via Joyful Noise Recordings, is as strong in its own way as was the most recent Sebadoh release. That's another way to say it's pretty damn good!

"In My Arms" and "Love Intervene" are simple, quietly euphoric, and elegant in composition. Barlow's knack for a quickly endearing hook here takes center stage, with the other strengths of his compositional art (a heavy riff, a mood rendered) taking a backseat. So much of Reason To Live is so direct that it's almost a surprise for anyone who's heard the noisier stuff in his back-catalog. "Clouded Age" is darn lovely, a hint of the influence of British folk here, while "Over You" takes that vibe and condenses the emotional punch into something wonderfully concise.

There are lots of tunes on Reason To Live, and yet the album never seems to overstay its welcome. Things might slow down a bit but the final trio of cuts makes this record seem a near-classic. "Tempted" is ruminative and moody, a dark delight, while "All You People Suck" sounds like the skeleton of a Sebadoh number, rehabiliated for a new era. Still, closer "Act of Faith" is probably my favorite thing here. Over a galloping hook, Barlow pours himself into something that's as close to a Richard Thompson number as anyone other than Richard is likely to pen in 2021. The whole album is built of rather simple pieces, but there's a lot of shades of meaning and emotion in what can be achieved with those elements. And Lou's achieved so much here.

Reason To Live is out on Friday via Joyful Noise Recordings.

[Photo: Adelle Barlow]