Photo: Bandcamp
American singer-songwriter and producer Chris Cohen has a catalogue littered with indie rock greats, having been a member of the band Deerhoof, contributing to albums by Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti, and Cass McCombs, and producing for artists like Weyes Blood, and Marina Allen, whose Cohen-produced album Eight Pointed Star I raved about earlier this year.
He also makes solo albums, consistently praised by the music press as well as people like Mac De Marco, who in 2012 called Cohen one of his favourite new artists.
Twelve years later he’s still operating somewhat under the radar, and has just released this fourth solo album.
These are polite, gently-crooned tunes. Cohen has a knack for arrangements, with everything in its right place, even if lacking in studio polish. You might expect that from someone with his impressive production credits, and he uses these pleasant sound beds to cradle his voice, smooth and steady if a bit samey.
‘Night and Day’ finds its spark in a few lead guitar chimes and propulsive chords, while tracks like the opening ‘Damage’ display a hint of the Brazilian music Cohen was inspired by during recording, including brass arrangements from modern jazz luminary Jeff Parker.
Paint a Room is one of those albums that’s more interesting to me because of its modest, presumably home-recorded sound. It can’t be easy to balance that with Cohen’s appetite for eclectic instrumentation.
One song later there’s flute and jaw-harp, and trombone, clarinet and violin all feature, along with bell and conga by Brijean Murphy, whose album I’ll be discussing next.
But this is indie guitar music first and foremost, and several tracks, like ‘Wishing Well’, evoke early R.E.M., a band who existed at the nexus point of post-punk and alternative rock.
It’s a petite, polite version of rock music, enjoyable on headphones as Cohen pans everything, including bass, in interesting ways, even if the song itself is a bit aimless.
More successful is ‘Sunever’, with folk harmonies rubbing up against an almost-reggae rhythm.
Chris Cohen’s greatest strength is his arrangements, and while Paint a Room smacks of one person’s creative vision, he actually gave his band carte blanche with their parts after road testing the tunes.
The results often hit a sweet spot between dour and chirpy, always charming, with details worth savouring.
