The Boy Named If
On his 32nd studio album, Elvis Costello treats the traditional rock quartet as the ideal medium for delicacy, concision, wit, and the occasional harangue.
Costello and his long-running backing band sound rejuvenated on their new album, a dense collection of both risks and hooks…
Maybe revisiting This Year's Model for Spanish Model -- an oddly effective reinterpretation of the 1978 classic featuring new vocals sung in Spanish by a variety of Latinx musicians over the original Attractions instrumentals -- shook something loose in Elvis Costello, as The Boy Named If is his purest dose of rock & roll since maybe Blood & Chocolate.
At this point in Elvis Costello’s long, storied, 45 year professional career, it’s a cliche to label any new album of his that sounds like this to be his best since *fill in the blank* or his first “rock” album since that same *fill in the blank* or a different, earlier album.
With the punch and pace of yore and the depth and richness of maturity, the singer-songwriter is back at his best
At its best, Elvis Costello’s ‘The Boy Named If’ rivals the fractious energy and melodic verve of the singer’s classic period. Read our review.
Declan McManus turns back the clock on songs that reference his late 1970s output