Resuscitate!

On YTILAER, Bill Callahan traced how, after pandemic isolation, people were returning to life as they knew it; on Resuscitate!, he documents his return to live performances. Being able to play shows was a sure sign that the worst of the COVID-19 global pandemic was over, and the March 2023 concert at Chicagos Thalia Hall captured on this album magnifies YTILAERs tumbling, sun-streaked joy with exultant performances. Callahan and his band -- which includes guitarist Matt Kinsey on guitar, drummer Jim White, and alto saxophonist Dustin Laurenzi -- turn in beaming renditions of songs such as "Natural Information," but Resuscitate!s most powerful moments occur when they use the live setting to play with the songs as much as they perform them. They transform "Coyotes" into an ecstatic 12-minute experience thats equal parts jazz improv session, poetry reading, and classic rock jam; on "Naked Souls," they trade the anger of the YTILAER version for mournful understanding; and they add a cosmic depth to "First Bird" that transcends domestic bliss. The feeling that music -- and life -- can grow richer with time might be even more apparent when Callahan ventures deeper into his songbook. The sentiment of "Keep Some Steady Friends Around," from Smogs 2001 album Rain on Lens, was already in keeping with YTILAERs themes, but the gentle Western lope its given here makes it a perfect fit. Likewise, the turbulent performance of "Drover" from 2011s Apocalypse heightens the songs underlying warmth as well as its drama. A triumphant live album, Resuscitate! is as much a celebration of the evolution of Callahans music as it is the shared experience between musicians and audience. ~ Heather Phares