The Call Go Organic
4 Out of 5 Stars
The last album of The Call's original run was a major left-turn away from the big, anthem filled previous albums. While the songs were still big in sound, the production tore down the walls, hid the synths, and went for something more intimate. In doing so, leader Michael Been rediscovered his soul, and made the most relaxed Call album in their discography.
It's obvious that something's afoot in the opening, "What Happened To You." Instead of Been's usually strident and sometimes accusatory manner, he sings in a gentler voice, backed by a shimmering guitar arrangement. Instead of a lyric that chastises, he asks his love what all the changes are about, and ends up being happy about them. "I like what I see," he cheerfully admits. And when a more Call-like song like "You Were There" comes up, exploring Been's love of Christian parables, it is punctuated by a saxophone instead of a raging synthesizer.
"Red Moon" continues in this vein, with richly textured songs and uplift. There's almost a vibe of The Band (Robbie Robertson and one time call pseudo member Garth Hudson both guest) to many of the songs here that never appeared on prior Call albums, and that's to "Red Moon's" favor. I was always confounded why, with three stints on major labels, The Call could never field a bona-fide, hit. I also wondered if "Red Moon" was seen by the band as a last hurrah, as they broke up shortly after releasing an album that was such a departure from their usual operations. Either way, when the sun set on "Red Moon," The Call went out with one of their best.
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