Misterschwartz

David Berman's magnum opus. Here, he largely eschews the wry sense of sarcasm that made his name. There's still plenty of humorous one-liners on here, like Storyline Fever's quip about Berman walking the line between Jim Morrison and Larry King. But this album's main themes are pure awe, defenselessness about a changing world that has become crueler every day, and sincere longing for a fading love. All My Happiness is Gone and Nights That Won't Happen are the most beautiful melodies Berman's ... read more

A surprisingly solid album of early 70s radio pastiche. The best songs here are the slower, acoustic tracks like Meet Me in the Hallway and Two Ghosts, where the simple but beautiful melodies make up for the sometimes saccharine lyricism. Sign of the Times is another highlight here, its bombast makes up for its repetitiveness. I really loved the melody and instrumentation on Ever Since New York, but it was so lackluster lyrically. Only Angel and Carolina are nice, fun tracks. I would really ... read more

A dream-like daze of memorable melodies. Verlaine's lyricism feels more cryptic this time around. While its predecessor Marquee Moon may have all the associations of late 70s NYC nightlife and culture oozing out of its wry sense of humor and jagged guitar riffs, Adventure feels like the calm after the storm. In particular, I loved Carried Away, which takes all my favorite things about Marquee Moon's Guiding Light and improves upon them in every way. Glory is a fantastic power-pop opening track ... read more