'Em Are I [PA] [Slipcase] (CD - 2009)

Personnel: Jeffrey Lewis (vocals, guitars, keyboards); Jack Lewis (vocals, keyboards, bass instrument); Jack Lewis (vocals, keyboards); Herman Dune (electric guitar, ukulele, percussion); Spencer Chakedis (slide guitar, mandolin); Simon Beins (trumpet); David Beauchamp, David Beauchamp, John Kessel (drums).

Recording information: Emandee, Brooklyn, NY.

His playing, writing, and arranging have become more sophisticated over the course of five albums, but the heart of Jeffrey Lewis's music is still the naked honesty of the lyrics and the simple, sweetly lilting melodies that he weaves into folk ("Roll Bus Roll," "If Life Exists"), punk/pop ("Broken Broken Broken Heart," "Slogans"), and garage ("Good Old Pig, Gone To Avalon") structures. This collection, inspired by a breakup with his former keyboardist in 2008, aches with truth but never abandons a wry and off-kilter sense of humor, as on the bluesy "To Be Objectified," where he both mourns his mortal form and expresses relief to be a part of the natural world--something larger than his own personal pain. Moments such as these abound on this well-crafted album. minimize