Talented
chamber pop troubadour
Rufus Wainwright followed up his startlingly fresh debut album with the 2001 release
Poses. While his self-titled first album was very much a work by
Wainwright (aided by his contributing producers),
Poses seems to be more of a group effort, with the young composer allowing the other performers on the album to lend their talents, creating an even fuller, more "live" sound. Both
Wainwright's younger sister
Martha and son of
British folk near-legends
Richard and
Linda Thompson,
Teddy Thompson contribute harmony vocals which soar above
Rufus' affecting moan like the choir he must hear in his head. Produced by
Pierre Marchand (
Sarah McLachlan), the album continues the same outstretched, enveloping sound established by
Wainwright's earlier work, but contributors like contemporary composer
Damian le Gassick and
Propellerheads'
Alex Gifford push in different directions, adding understated drum loops and gritty beats in unexpected places. Above all of the studio gimcrackery and pedigreed guest stars floats
Wainwright himself, whose introspective, wry, and heart-wrenching songwriting remains his true strength (although his leisurely operatic tenor is not far behind). The clunking, loping
"Greek Song" evokes the sprawl of an impossible
Ingmar Bergman spaghetti Western, while the swaggering
"California" shows a sunny exterior masking the song's satirical sneer. Amidst this sonic barrage, a high point comes in the cover of patriarch
Loudon Wainwright III's
"One Man Guy." Performed by
Rufus,
Martha, and
Teddy Thompson's simple acoustic guitar, these three grown children of the '70s
folk movement embrace the song faithfully, basking in their own harmonies and offering a respite from the blissfully lush
orchestral pop that surrounds it. While
Poses shows growth and worthwhile exploration, the album's "group" feel suffers only slightly from being less intimate than
Wainwright's first album. Although his contributors add much, there was something blushingly personal about his debut that may have gotten a little buried this time around. That being said,
Poses is still a spectacular album, brimming over with
Wainwright's trademark
popera and young romantic wishes. At times the album is beautifully discordant and sonically chilling, but often hints at warm grins with mischievous winks. ~ Zac Johnson
