The new album from Mega Bog (Erin Birgy) is an odd thing. It's also a lovely record. Life, And Another continues the kind of art rock that Laurie Anderson and others pursued in decades past, while offering up new iterations of something uniquely iconoclastic. The tunes here are accessible, but also Art-y in a pleasant way.
"Station to Station" is not the Bowie song but something sleek and serene, while "Crumb Back" is nearly peppy. Sax and choppy guitar riffs make this more mainstream, even as the title cut mixes jazz with what's clearly influenced by Jane Siberry. This one, and the Kate Bush-inspired "Maybe You Died" are clear highlights here, but really, all of Life, And Another is fairly engaging. It helps that Birgy's voice is as sweet as honey, and that the arrangements mostly favor rich textures and keyboard figures, rather than more confrontational material.
Life, And Another is out Friday via Paradise of Bachelors.
More details on Mega Bog via the official website.
[Photo: Jasper McMahon]