Upon hearing that an established rock artist is going to promote his or her latest album as "political," one must tread warily. Oftentimes with such albums, the lyrics are so pointed and "topical" that however well-intentioned or "important," they turn into clichéd banalities or tired diatribes (e.g., John Lennon's Somewhere In New York City, recent Steve Earle). Additionally, the music often seems to be constructed as an afterthought, something just to accompany the lyrics, ensuring that the album will be forgotten in a few years time (e.g., the above-two examples). Of course, many exceptions abound (Bob Dylan, for one, though he never promoted his albums as explicitly political in tone). Indeed, Neil Young's "Ohio," about the killing of four student anti-war protestors in 1970 at Kent State by the National Guard, is one of the finest, and most memorable, political songs in rock. So what of Mr. Young's new album, his second in seven months (!), which is his "response" to the Iraq war and the Bush presidency? Let us rejoice that it belongs in the "exceptional" rather than the "to-be-forgotten" category. First and foremost, this is due to the high quality of the music. Recalling his seventies work with Crazy Horse, and completely opposite from his recent acoustic foray, Prairie Wind, Young cranks out monster riffs and rocking guitar-centric tunes (occasionally accompanied by a 100-voice choir and/or trumpets) that are better than just about anything he has come up with in a decade. Catchy melodies and hooks are sprinkled throughout to ensure that the music will stick regardless of the lyrics. But even lyrically, Young gracefully avoids falling into the complaint/whine mode often found with topical albums. While there are certainly tunes on the album that are overdone and register pretty high on the "diatribe meter" (e.g., "Let's Impeach The President"), overall, Neil has served his subject matter well by crafting lyrics that apply to war and poor leadership, in general, and using the Iraq war and Bush presidency as specific examples of the types of injustices suffered during such times. Further, Young doesn't trot out the "America as villain" ideas and examples that often plague current Bush critics, even concluding the album with a rendition of "America The Beautiful," sung by the aforementioned 100-member choir. In sum, Young has used his political outrage to fashion a very strong album which, while not up there with his classics, shows that he can still come up with ace rock tunes and stinging guitar work. And there is nothing banal or tired about that.

With focus placed squarely on one voice, one acoustic guitar, and an occasional horn or light percussive patter, Veneer is about as stark as singer-songwriter albums get these days. It's also as good as they get. Gonzales, born in Sweden of Argentinian parents, delivers a melancholy, minor-key feast that has what I can only describe as a "mellow urgency" to it. Certainly there are strong hints of Nick Drake and Elliott Smith here, but Gonzales easily separates himself from the singer-songwriter pack with both his expert guitar-playing, which often incorporates flamenco-styled strumming and unbelievably hypnotic finger-picked figures, as well as with his chord changes, which occasionally sound like they might be borrowing from the Black Sabbath catalog (e.g., Lovestain, Crosses). If you enjoy the folkier side of rock and/or adore beautiful and varied acoustic-guitar work, this album will be an undeniable pleasure for your late-night listening sessions.