June 11, 2001 by A.S. Van Dorston

Of the singers left standing after the fallout of the Seattle sound, all bets were on Chris Cornell, who unfortunately fell a bit short with his first solo attempt. Screaming Trees’ Mark Lanegan, sometimes referred to as the best voice in rock, has been recording solo albums ever since 1990’s The Winding Sheet. His persistence and productiveness has rewarded us with Field Songs, Lanegan’s fifth and strongest album. The album is nearly entirely folk based, with the exception of “No Easy Action,” a dramatic Afghan Whigs-style rocker complete with a chorus of female sirens. “Pill Hill Serenade” is a soulful ballad that recalls Lanegan’s awe-inspiring cover of Eddie Floyd & Booker T. Jones’ “Consider Me” on 1999’s I’ll Take Care Of You. Songs like the eerie and menacing “Miracle” the tortured “Don’t Forget Me” and the ominous “Field Song” are dark deconstructions of minor-key blues in the vein of Tom Waits and Nick Cave.

In contrast, “Kimiko’s Dream House” has a melody that’s so pretty it would float out the window if it weren’t weighed down by Lanegan’s voice, heavy with whiskey and stone. “Resurrection Song” is a thoroughly haunting lament that would be prime cover material for the mighty Sixteen Horsepower, as the ghost of his old pal Kurt Cobain watches proudly. Still a north woods man’s man, Lanegan has no time for personal confessions. Rather, his songs deliver universal messages about failed love and torment. Those who miss his rock star persona will be happy to hear he has become a full time touring member of Queens of the Stone Age, with whom he sang their best song so far, “In The Fade.” I recently had a dream where I saw Lanegan and the Queens perform an incredible cover of Van Morrison’s “Astral Weeks” that perfectly merged his folk blues and psychedelia backgrounds. In their world, anything is possible.

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