Vocalist Theo Bleckmann is one of those rare artists who resolutely fits in no category. It’s not because he’s musically restless – though that’s certainly a factor. It’s that, as a singer, he hears all music as his genre. He’s sung on jazz records, classical records, pop records, experimental records, and everything in between. So when he finds the time to make a solo album, he casts a wide net.
Love & Anger, named for the Kate Bush song that leads it, is no exception. Under the watchful eye of drummer and producer Ulysses Owens Jr., Bleckmann wraps his warm tenor around alt.pop (Bush’s “Bertie,” Massive Attack’s “Teardrop”), gospel (“Precious Lord”), singer/songwriter folk (Janis Ian’s “Stars”), non-binary disco (Sylvester’s “Mighty Real”), classical (Henry Purcell’s haunting and timeless “Dido’s Lament”), R&B (Frank Ocean’s “Solo”), jazz classicism (Sheila Jordan’s “The Crossing”), and even the Beatles (“You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away”). The eclectic program demands equally eclectic arrangements, which leads Bleckmann and a crack band of musicians into interpretations as straightforward as the Bush tunes and as radical as his takes on the Beatles and Sylvester.
Near the end, he illustrates real deep cut taste with a gently swinging version of unjustly forgotten British singer/songwriter Labi Siffre’s “Crying, Laughing, Loving, Lying” that showcases the band’s taste and skill and Bleckmann’s perfect interpretation. That obscure gem caps off a generally smart, accessible, and gorgeous record quite nicely.
