Such a Sad Ride4 Out of 5 Stars
Duncan Sheik has been afforded the success of a Tony Award winning play and an early pop breakthrough, but his albums have maintained a cultish status. "White Limousine," with its hushed melodies and poetic lyrics, probably won't gather many new fans, but it is up there with his best works (the debut, "Phantom Moon'). And frankly, it's one of the saddest sounding albums I own.
"Hey Casanova, you don't look so good,
And I know that times are tough.
You never found your paradise like you said you would
and things are catching up."
The songs on "While Limousine" muse of the futility of love, the misplacement of faith, the disillusionment of leadership (the cruelly soft-spoken title track especially) and life's bummers in general. Like Nick Drake of Janis Ian, Sheik has delivered and album for those who contemplate suicide when downbeat albums are enough.
It's also beautifully done. Both "So Gone" and "I Don't Believe In Ghosts" are standout lost love songs, and "Shopping" is a catchy ditty about the follies of fandom. It's a biting look at how the artist sees himself at his worst and another highlight on the album.
"And you asked me, so innocently, of my inspiration
Why I write the songs I sing,
the reasons why I make them.
Well, nothing here is what it seems,
I'll risk the wreckage of your dreams.
It's so that you are always shopping.
To steal away the cash you're dropping."
It's heartbreakingly honest and funny is its own weird way, which is why the bulk of "White Limousine" works so well. Put it on and disconnect the phone. Go ahead and bum yourself out.
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