The album opens with "Overture" which features Max on trumpet, delivering some wonderful stuff. Scott plays several instruments, including mellotron and piano. And yes, the track introduces some different themes, as overtures do. This is a delightfully odd way to begin things, which, of course, is perfect for this band. That track leads straight into "I'm A Prison," which comes on strong, with some dominant, energetic guitar work by Kurt, and a wild, powerful punk force, particularly to the vocals, and also to that excellent bass line. "Won't get over the wire/Or through any tunnel/Or beyond the tree line/Without my permission/I'm a prison/I'm a prison/I'm a prison/You can't get in." At the end, it begins to break down, as if having worn itself out, which is fantastic, feeling just exactly right.
A good beat then gets "Killing Time In Union Square" in motion. There is certainly a more relaxed feel to this one, but with a rhythm that is catchy, a bass line you can't help but like. The energy then increases for these lines: "And if you need me to fly/I will fly, I will fly/And if you dig me a door/I will take you every place/I've never been before." I'm digging those lyrics, particularly the image of digging a door, a provocative image. That's followed by "Three Gasconading Saints," which features some good work by Max on trumpet at the beginning. This is what pop music could and should be. There is a delicious vibe to this, plus some cool lyrics, like these lines: "The pause of ancient scribble/Courtesy of closet haints." There are not many songs that use the word "haint." The first I remember hearing is that old "Haunted House" song, the one from the 1960s, which had the line "Ain't no haint gonna run me off." The only other one I can think of is Charlie Musselwhite's "Ghosts In Memphis." Jenny plays accordion on this track, and Peter Buck is on 12-string guitar.
"Before The Deluge" has a pretty sound, created in part by Jonathan's wonderful work on violin at the beginning, and also by that wonderful work by Morgan Fisher on piano. Jonathan also adds some sweet touches on mandolin. "My missile to Mars/I cannot return/Forgotten the way/Sorry the soujourn/Became a cliche/Hey hey hey/But it's a good day." Scott's vocal approach here has a certain touch of melancholy, and so there is something of a mixed feeling as he repeats "It's a good day/It's a good day/It's a good day." This is one of my personal favorites, in large part because of his vocal performance. The track ends with the violin and mandolin. Things then get wonderfully strange with "Death Becomes Us," which has a certain psychedelic element, particularly in that work on strings, and owes something to The Beatles' "Tomorrow Never Knows," partly in that beat, which I love. Jonathan is on violin, and Morgan provides the synth strings, as well work on electric piano. This track also features a very cool bass line. And check out these lyrics: "Old death was classic, dark victory style/Petrified ever in celluloid frame/The good and the worst, too bloodless to smile." And speaking of smiling, how can you help but smile at a phrase like "Capo'd crusaders"? This is another of my personl favorites.
"Entr'acte" is a short, beautiful and somewhat sad instrumental number, delivered by just Scott on piano and Jonathan on violin. That's followed by "Books Don't Burn Twice," which has a more mellow and sweet vibe, a song that plays at the edges of our memories. "Our books down't burn twice, beyond regretting/Words getting married, song is a wedding/Our books don't burn twice/Our books won't burn twice/Our books don't burn twice/But I'm forgetting." Within the last few years, I re-read Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 (this is the time for all dystopian novels, isn't it?), and one thing that stuck with me was the people who were responsible for memorizing the books, for keeping them alive. If I were one of those people, and of course as I was reading that's precisely the role I assigned myself, I'd be so afraid of forgetting. I forget so very much as it is. So much can be lost forever. And that became the most worrisome part of the novel for me. And listening to this song puts me back in that frame of mind. The way the world is now, it seems that a lot is being forgotten.
Neko Case provides the lead vocals on "Destination," a song with a totally delicious pop energy. I think it would be damn near impossible to not fall for this song. "The train didn't stop/The train didn't stop/At your destination." Ah yes, I think we can all relate to those lines. Yet something about this song just makes me feel so bloody good. I love, love, love this song. It features some wonderful guitar work. I'm digging that drumming too. "I am leaving/I am going." Then "Whispering Hole" is a great, fast-paced, high-energy number. It's a short song, coming in, grabbing us, and getting out in less than two minutes. Yet it is still long enough for a cool, though, brief, guitar lead. And it features Steve Berlin on saxophone. "Isn't it a gas?/Lit up like a blast/Oh, where does it go?/Oh, where will you go?/Whispering hole." That's followed by "1987," which has a steady beat, a steady pulse, and a good groove. That delicious power pop thing. "Memory's journal/Is often replaced/Nails scratching a cell wall/Blown up and erased." This song also mentions Nina Simone, and I love that "mone, mone, mone" after her name is mentioned. "Memory infested/And guzzled like paste."
The band then goes in another direction with "Harpoon In The Hay," with Mark on vibraphone, helping to set the unusual tone at the beginning. "Last time that I looked at you/Your smile had been reversed/A choir had been paid in full/Though never been rehearsed." This track has a great jazzy vibe, with some psychedelic touches and a seriously cool vocal performance. "And that's why I'm a puppet/With so very much to say/Looking for the fatal sentence/A harpoon in the hay." This is yet another of the disc's highlights, a fantastic number that gets wild toward the end and then continues to push on through. The album then concludes with "Exit Music/The Theme," which opens with the line "The future was now," and I'm immediately in love with the song. Future, past and present are all forced into that opening sentence. "The future astounds/The future confounds/I will abuse it." It is like a dark, slow carnival number. How did we all end up on this crazy ride anyway? I don't know, but I'm so glad this band is on the ride with us.
CD Track List
- Overture
- I'm A Prison
- Killing Time In Union Square
- Three Gasconading Saints
- Before The Deluge
- Death Becomes Us
- Entr'acte
- Books Don't Burn Twice
- Destination
- Whispering Hole
- 1987
- Harpoon In The Hay
- Exit Music/The Theme
Loft was released on CD on March 27, 2026 on Yep Roc Records.
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