Guitars, Drums, Tones, and Saxophones

Morrissey - Years of Refusal

I’ve been meaning to sit down and write this for some time now. Man, I love me some Morrissey. His work with the Smiths comprises some of my favorite music of all time. He solo albums have been more hit-or-miss, though, unlike apparently everyone on Earth, I really like Maladjusted, the album that preceeded Moz’s seven year absence from recording. When he returned, it was like the polar opposite; critics and fans hailed You Are the Quarry as a stunning return from the Mozzer. Then he dropped the underwhelming Ringleader of the Tormentors in 2006.

And now, here we are, with Years of Refusal. His post-hiatus output has shown the same up/down tendencies as the pre-hiatus did. So how’s this album?

Well, let’s talk briefly about that cover art. Morrissey, holding a baby? With a font that reminds me of some ’60s psychedelic flyer art? OK, sure, why not.First off, his voice hasn’t changed much since Quarry; it’s older, a bit deeper, doesn’t quite hit the high notes like it did, but still draws the listener in absolutely. The cliche that an artist could sing the telephone book (kids, look it up) holds true for the Moz. Thankfully, here the songs mostly live up to the voice. The energetic, uptempo “Something is Squeezing My Skull” kicks things off with Morrissey proclaiming that he’s “doing very well,” and he certainly seems to be. The songs, retaining his usual flare for melodrama and darkly witty commentary, are overall strong. His songwriting collaborators provide the perfect backing music for his words.

The first single from the album, “I’m Throwing My Arms Around Paris,” is wonderfully classic Morrissey, albeit by way of more recent singles like “First of the Gang to Die” and “I Have Forgiven Jesus.” The aforementioned “Skull” and “All You Need Is Me” show off how much of a rock background his band has; the songs have a relatively frantic pace that calls to mind “Irish Blood, English Heart.” Perhaps some of Moz’s New York Dolls love coming through?

The album doesn’t have much in the way of his slower numbers like “Come Back to Camden” or “All the Lazy Dykes;” really, “You Were Good in Your Time” is the only song that doesn’t attempt to rock out. Which is fine, if you like Morrissey’s more aggressive sounding songs. And the album certainly has an aggressive confidence, closing with “I’m OK By Myself.” He most certainly is, and we’re glad to have him as such.

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