Tall Stories & New Religions

Coming off his excellent 2022 album Time on Earth, which found the singer/songwriter in an especially reflective mood, Pete Astor celebrated his 40th year as a recording artist by gathering the same group of musicians, selecting songs from throughout his career, and recording them in a stripped-down and intimate fashion. Astors band (Ian Button on drums, Neil Scott on guitar, Andy Lewis on bass, and Sean Read on keys and production) prove once again to have an almost telepathic way of backing him, which brings out added shadings to his songs and allows his plain-spoken, honest, and true vocals to cut extra deep. All the facets of Astors long career are touched on, from the early jangle pop of the Loft and the swaggering indie rock of the Weather Prophets to his tender solo recordings from the 90s and his electronic work made under the name the Wisdom of Harry. Each one is shorn of jangle, grandeur, or electronic textures and delivered with restraint, mostly built around acoustic guitar with Scotts electric guitar swooping in with gentle tremolo and the rest of the group giving off very loose first-take vibes. Its quite similar to Yo La Tengos Fakebook, only without the covers. Most of Astors best-known songs are studiously avoided in favor of some of his hidden gems, though theres a lovely, laid-back version of "She Comes from the Rain," which was one of the Weather Prophets best songs. The rest of the record may dig a little deeper, but the excavation is definitely worthwhile -- Astor sounds suitably invested in presenting these nuggets in a different way. His vocal on a song like "Emblem," where he imbues it with wisdom and emotion that exceed that of the original is proof that this album isnt just a musician marking time, hes seeking -- and finding -- new dimensions to old songs with the result being an album thats absolutely a treat for longtime fans of Astors work and a great starting point for anyone who wants to get a basic idea of what hes all about. ~ Tim Sendra