Neko Case - Middle Cyclone

So, this one's been out for a week now. I got to hear it streaming on NPR for a week or so prior to its release, and dutifully went and got my copy when it came out. Neko Case has made a trend of her albums subtly improving from one to the next, while all being excellent. I guess it's a pretty fine distinction to make between being disappointed and feeling let down, but let's say this is a bit of a letdown when viewed against the fibonacci-like thread of her entire catalogue up to this point. Don't take that to mean I don't like this, though. Like I said, I dutifully got a copy as soon as I could, and I did so because it's still a fine album. I listened and listened again, and when my feelings on the matter were clear, I decided this: Her strength in performing is at its peak when the songs aren't too slow, and this is a slower album than the perfect "Fox confessor brings the flood". Of the 15 songs, 4 of 'em could have been on her last album. 2 of 'em were covers, (a first for her) Sparks' "never turn your back on mother earth" and Harry Nilsson's "don't forget me", which I saw fit to turn my back on and forget, respectively. One is a field recording of frogs croaking at night and lasts for a half hour. I really like that one, actually, but I also like the sound of Sonic Youth plucking bedsprings in Wharton Tiers' basement, so be advised. The remaining songs are all quite good. The remaining songs are all too slow for me. Almost all of them pick up at some point in the song, which I like. A couple don't, which is meh.
The title track sounds almost like a lullaby, and then a damn music box comes in. Don't try so hard to put me to sleep, Neko! Still, it's a good song. Everything she wrote for this album is good. It's just a whisker too slow to be truly great to my ears. This one straddles the razor's edge of A and B material for me. What to do? Oh, I'll give it two letter grades. That'll work.