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Rating: One of the most enigmatic singer-songwriters of recent years, Nina Nastasia, quickly became the darling of Steve Albini (yes, "the one" who produced Rid Of Me by PJ Harvey, Surfer Rosa by the Pixies, and In Utero by Nirvana) and nothing less than the favorite of John Peel (the iconic English DJ who passed away a few days ago) who, defying everyone, introduced her as the best artist of 2003 and hosted her several times to play for his sessions on BBC radio.
Those familiar with Albini (remember Shellac or Big Black?) and who followed Peel's shows might say: "And who is this? Another Polly?"
Well, search the internet for some information, and you won't even find her birth date, and at most, a dozen photos.
We know that Nina lived in Los Angeles for several years before permanently moving to New York and dedicating herself to a very "urban" songwriting. Dogs was released in 1999 by Socialist Records, and its extremely limited edition quickly turned it into a rarity. Nastasia was signed in 2000 by Touch And Go (Sonic Youth, among others), which proposed a reissue of the album in 2004, with a new cover.
Dogs, the most "optimistic" of her works, features music ranging from the most classic folk to a few steps toward independence, but above all, lyrics that verge on epigrams (beautiful, among others, here: Go get the dogs out on the hill/He wants to lick the moon/I made a wish upon your head/I only want to sleep and dream/Lazy sky/Your stars look tired/Keep me bright).
Listening more closely to the album, one can understand how his excellence in noise Albini was won over by Nina's acoustic guitar. His meticulous work makes Dogs more than just indie-folk (or some label along those lines): with vintage instruments and the voice of the petite singer-songwriter, one brushes up against a masterpiece right from the debut.
The arrangements, all in all essential, rely heavily on strings, which for their use repeatedly cite contemporary artists (are you familiar with Marco Parente's Eppur Non Basta? - though there it was more two violas than a violin - and Venus? or the CSI of Linea Gotica?).
Some might have already labeled her as any ordinary less drunk Cat Power or a hypothetical Suzanne Vega, but Nina sings and plays herself: both in her more personal little songs in C major (Underground, A Dog's Life, Judy's In The Sandbox) and when she seems more accompanied by the producer, amid feedback and odysseys of slightly scraped and slightly plucked strings (Jimmy's Rose Tattoo - noteworthy - and the "small" Roadkill and Smiley).
Occasionally, the guitar/bass/drum schemes worthy of that old rock everyone claims is dying resurface (Nobody Knew Her).
Perhaps fifteen tracks are too many (she could have ended with All Your Life), but given the very modest price of the current reissue (don't pay more than 11 euros!), it's a piece you can easily add to your discography without much reservation, both for the price and the content (especially).
When is the next one?
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
03 Judy's in the Sandbox (03:15)
Judy's in the sandbox
With gravel in her shoes
She's playing in the spotlight
No sugar with that pose
And everywhere that judy is
Her lamb is sure to go
He watches how she lifts her dress
And spins into a spell
Ha-a-hoo, he takes a breath and pulls her in
And shuts her out, the ways to hold her hand
Ha-a-hoo, he looks around and feels her curls
Across his frozen cheek, too close to touch
Judy's in the sandbox
Baking cakes against the sun
He walks across the playground
She scolds him with a frown
She turns her back to tease him
Then she laughs beyond control
He wipes his brow and steps inside
To play with emily rose
Ha-a-hoo, he takes a breath and pulls her in
And shuts her out, the ways to hold her hand
Ha-a-hoo, he looks around and feels her curls
Across his frozen cheek, too close to touch
He takes a breath (look around, look around, he can hardly breathe)
And pulls her in (look around, look around, he can hardly move)
And shuts her out (look around, look around, feel him closing in)
And weights to hold her hand... And weights to hold her in...
La-da-da-da-da...
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