It's a risky proposition taking on Vic
Chesnutt tunes, especially a full album's worth. Nobody sang quite
like Vic – contorting and emphasizing words and syllables so that
his lyrics became uniquely his own. Still the Junkies' vibe is a good
fit with Vic's tunes. They had all worked together on the remake of
The Trinity Session (Trinity Revisited,
released in 2008), a session where the Junkies were joined by
Vic, Ryan Adams and Natalie Merchant. On Demons, Cowboy
Junkies cover eleven of Vic's songs, reaching back to the tile track
from West of Rome in 1991, adding several others from his
catalog of a dozen or so albums, including three cuts from At The
Cut, the last record Chesnutt recorded.
Vic's unusual singing style and
playfulness with words served to draw the listener in. In a different
way, Margo Timmin's softer and much prettier voice often does the
same, most effectively on some of the slower and quieter tunes like
“I'll See You Around” and “Supernatural.” The latter is
effectively augmented with mandolin and eerie bowed string sounds.
Unfortunately Margo's voice is a little lost in the mix on a couple
of the louder songs. On “Ladle” the guitar riff and Michael
Timmin's fractured guitar solo drive the song along, but it's too
easy to miss the mildly suggestive chorus.
For
those unfamiliar with the twists and turns of Vic's lyrics,
I've Flirted With You All my Life tricks the listener into
thinking it's about a school boy crush, before it turns into into a
song about death, and despite the sad irony of Chesnutt's own death
in December 2009, the Junkies evolve it into an affirmation of life
with declarations of “I'm not ready.”
Overall Demons is an effective
and worthwhile tribute to a an artist who was known by too few during
his lifetime. The record is the second volume of The Nomad Series,
a four album release by The Cowboy Junkies over an eighteen month
span.
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