Tortoise & Bonnie Prince Billy - The Brave and the Bold

During the past year, the musical underground served up several compelling collaborations, including Louisville compatriots Lambchop and Hands Off Cuba, alt-country legends Richard Buckner and John Langford, and Iron and Wine/Calexico. The new year started off on the same note, pairing the mercurial Bonnie “Prince” Billy (Will Oldham) with Chicago's post-punk progenitor Tortoise. The result is The Brave and the Bold, an eclectic collection of ten cover songs ranging from a stripped-down version of Bruce Springsteen's “Thunder Road” to an upbeat reworking of Devo’s “That’s Pep!” < > The Brave and the Bold starts off with a bang--a brash guitar/horn driven reworking of South American pop icon Milton Nascimento's “Cravo E Canela,” followed by the standout track on the album, an epic version of Springsteen's “Thunder Road.” Whereas Springsteen’s original is a testosterone-fueled paean to the freedom of the open road, Tortoise/Bonnie "Prince" Billy's version uses minimal arrangements to highlight the narrator's desperation and vulnerability. Jeff Parker’s distorted guitar and Oldham’s unusually sinister vocals transform the Minutemen's previously funky “It's Expected, I'm Gone,” while the cover of Elton John's bittersweet “Daniel” is relatively faithful, apart from an odd, somewhat distracting electronic tweak. Lungfish's simple punk chord progressions in “Love is Love” get transformed into NIN-style industrial, not unlike “Happy Child,” a song Oldham previously recorded with NIN's Chris Vrenna. The remainder of the album includes a cover of Don Williams' schmaltzy country number “Pancho” that is simultaneously ludicrous and beautiful, Devo’s “That's Pep,” a sparse and haunting version of Melanie's “Some Say (I Got Devil),” a faithful rendering of Richard Thompson's “Calvary Cross,” and countrified version of Quixotic's “On My Own” complete with a smattering of banjo. Tortoise proves throughout The Brave and the Bold that they are more than capable of handling a variety of musical styles, but the songs that most forcefully resonate are the ones that showcase Oldham's strained, wistful vocals. When Tortoise reigns in the sonic experimentation and acts mainly as a support band, the results are impressive. The spare arrangements that accompany Melanie's “Some Say (I Got Devil)” are replete with sadness and despair, but also beauty. The same is true of “Thunder Road,” “Daniel,” “Pancho,” and “Calvary Cross.” The weak points on the album are “That's Pep!” and “Love is Love,” where the sonic textures Tortoise create reveal the limitations of Oldham's vocal range. Ultimately, The Brave and the Bold is not the best of either Tortoise or Bonnie “Prince” Billy, but it is a solid collection of covers from two of the most revered names in the indie music world. [www.overcoatrecordings.com]