John Cale
Black Acetate

THE REVIEW

How does one manage to be 63 years old, to have been one of the two minds of one of the most significant bands in rock history, to go through rock experimentation over the years, from proto-punk to collaborations with Terry Riley, one of the fathers of the synthesizer, and to never feel satisfied, never tamed or content, and actually always be innovative and never predictable, maintaining the same freshness, carefree spirit, and curiosity? For most, it is certainly very difficult, but not for John Cale, a multifaceted and cross-genre artist, one of the most controversial and enigmatic figures in the rock scene.

Black Acetate is his latest studio effort, somewhat overlooked in my opinion, a work following the excellent and surprising Hobo Sapiens from 2003. The album revolves around a substantial rock base, yet is well framed by electronic and experimental schemes, never intrusive, always discreet and delicate.

Ideally, the album can be divided into two parts: the first certainly lighter, opening with Outta The Bag, with funky-jazz arrangements, but also electronic, introspective, and intimate as seen in Satisfied, with a vaguely "Sigur-Ros-like" taste, or like the delicate and poignant GravelDrive, where the vocal tone resembles that of Tom Waits, which also concludes the first part of the album. In the second part, Cale gives in to his more rock-oriented vein, fearless and gritty rock as in Perfect or Sold Motel, but also carefree and uninvolved as in Woman and Wasteland. The album closes with the melancholic ballad Mailman (The Lying Song) which, in my opinion, organically and cohesively reconnects the two sides of the album.