Lightning Show Us Your Stuff

2018s Widdershins presented a Grant-Lee Phillips who was willing to mount a soapbox and speak his mind about life in Trump-era America. Two years later, on 2020s Lightning Show Us Your Stuff, Phillips is feeling a bit quieter and more introspective, still a man of principles but less inclined to speak so loudly about them. This music isnt the work of someone who has resigned himself to unfortunate changes in America; instead, he takes his time training a keen eye on the world around him, and has plenty to say about the larger issues of a culture in chaos as well as the stuff that complicates the heart and soul of nearly all of us. The loneliness of Leave a Light On and the frustrations of a life going nowhere in Straight to the Ground rest comfortably besides the troubled ruminations of Sometimes You Wake Up in Charleston and the casual, sincere defiance of Aint Done Yet, and he confronts them all with honesty and purpose. As a songwriter, Phillips has always been eloquent but never a sloganeer, and thats certainly the case with Lightning Show Us Your Stuff; his messages are smart while leaving some interpretive wiggle room, though his vocals tell the tale as well as the songs themselves, and in this case, that works just fine. Phillipss singing has long been one of his greatest assets, and the smooth, soulful tone of his instrument is in excellent shape, a perfect vehicle for the quiet determination of the music. Hes assembled a superb band for these sessions: bassist Jennifer Condos and drummer Jay Bellerose build a subtle yet unshakable foundation for the songs, and Eric Heywoods pedal steel guitar and Danny T. Levins brass add lots of effective detail to the arrangements. Lightning Show Us Your Stuff doesnt feel like one of the truly great albums in Grant-Lee Phillipss catalog, but its certainly a very good one, and any artist who can reliably turn out music this smart, impassioned, and well-crafted is someone who more than deserves a larger audience. ~ Mark Deming