For a man who's spent almost 30 years making smart-ass music with two different bands (Camper Van Beethoven and Cracker, which are well documented in the excellent 300 songs blog), David Lowery's solo debut, The Palace Guards, is pretty serious stuff. Humor does pop up here and there throughout the album but it's nowhere near as consistent as his past work. The title tracks story of terrible "superheros" who work hard to "bring the bacon home" and "keep the little piggies safe in their straw homes" is both funny and weirdly sweet. When Lowery sings about "all those Spanish Myspace girls" in "Baby All Those Girls Meant Nothing To Me" (the closest thing to a rock song on the album) it's something you'd expect to hear in Cracker's repertoire. The hillbilly two-step "Raise 'Em Up On Honey" warns of "bible thumpers" and suggests giving children "weapons trainin" for when the "DEA comes snoopin" but the humor really stops there.
A majority of The Palace Guards is a reflective look at life, love and dreams. While most of the music would fit right in with either Camper or Cracker (mostly Camper) the lyrics are much more personal. A lot of songs are ballads that feature horns and strings in the background but it's Lowery's voice and lyrics that are front and center.
Like any good solo album The Palace Guards is different than what Lowery has released with his bands but still maintains a degree of familiarity. With only 9 songs, it's a little short and I wish there was one real rocker present but fans of Lowery's music will want to pick a copy of The Palace Guards up.
Rating: 3.5/5
Track Listing:
1. "Raise 'Em Up On Honey" (4:28)
2. "The Palace Guards" (3:40)
3. "Deep Oblivion" (5:35)
4. "Ah, You Left Me" (3:47)
5. "Baby, All Those Girls Meant Nothing To Me" (4:08)
6. "I Sold the Arabs the Moon" (4:04)
7. "Marigold" (5:30)
8. "Big Life" (4:26)
9. "Submarine" (3:48)
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