Noise and Flowers (Live)

Dedicated listeners of Neil Young will wonder what Promise of the Real can do that Young’s better-known band, Crazy Horse, can’t. The answer is plenty. No, they’re not as loose, nor do they have the caveman swagger that makes Crazy Horse feel so dangerous. But what they lack in power, they make up for with a subtlety and finesse that Young’s songs suggest but don’t often get: an “On the Beach” that sounds sinister instead of stoned; a “Rockin’ in the Free World” with actual solos and instrumental breakdowns instead of sheer sweeps of noise. Recorded in 2019, this career-spanning set—classics like “Mr. Soul” and “Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere” and “Helpless”; lesser-known stuff like “Throw Your Hatred Down” and “I’ve Been Waiting for You”—will ultimately do what every good live Young album does: make you hear songs you already know in new and liberating ways.