Emerald City
by John Vanderslice

Album details

US: 24 July 2007 on Barsuk
UK: IMPORT ONLY

The vaguely political ‘Emerald City’ is the indie rock producer’s sixth solo album.

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The critical consensus

Many indie rock fans are familiar with Vanderslice’s work whether or not they know they are (he’s a talented and prolific producer), but the complex, often cryptic, story-driven songs on his own albums have yet to elevate him above underground status, despite frequenly-positive reviews. The reviews are strong once again for Emerald City, and if you trust Aversion, this could finally be his breakthrough. "It’s the best of both worlds — indie cred and wide-open accessibility — that Vanderslice’s supporters waited years to hear," says that site in a glowing review, calling Emerald City "an album that’s as crammed with pop thrills as sinister songwriting."

Other critics were equally wowed. Paste labels the album a "vividly imagined" work from "a master storyteller," while an impressed Spin notes that it "may be his most unsettling work yet." PopMatters highlights Vanderslice’s "remarkable knack for meshing compelling narratives with tight songcraft." And Slant flat-out loves it, stating, "Both on a song-for-song basis and as singular cohesive work, Emerald City demonstrates Vanderslice’s masterful control of craft at every structural level and his unrivaled ability to make the political personal." Entertainment Weekly can’t resist calling it a "gleaming gem."

The Washington Post notes that the disc falters when "Vanderslice ventures into new soundscapes," but overall indicates that Emerald City is "worth a visit." CokemachineGlow, on the other hand, finds the album too restrained and formulaic to be truly successful, concluding, "The problem is that Vanderslice’s lyrical scope remains too broad to enable a cohesive or definitive conceptual statement, and his music too tightly defined and predictable to be considered a departure." Pitchfork finds it not just predictable but almost a "carbon copy" of 2005’s Pixel Revolt, and while they enjoy Vanderslice’s music, they are much less fond of his "heavy-handed rhetoric."

Emerald City … reiterates once again that Vanderslice is holding the torch as one of indie-rock’s most imaginative songwriters.

- All Music Guide

Review roundup

Tracklisting and media

1. Kookaburra
2. Time To Go
   
   
3. The Parade
4. White Dove
   
5. Tablespoon Of Codeine
6. The Tower
7. The Minaret
8. Numbered Lithograph
9. Central Booking

Also on the web

• Official Artist Site
• JV @ Barsuk
• JV @ MySpace