On Cataldo’s fourth album Gilded Oldies, Eric Anderson has lost the acoustic guitar in favor of a kick drum. He’s also ditched the sweaters for tailored suits. He’s looking more Jason Schwartzman circa-Rushmore these days, and we like it.
Prison Boxing was a great local record, but Gilded Oldies’ seductive pop tunes have raised the stakes. The string and horn arrangements are still there, but have been added into a larger, more textural, instrumental palette. Anderson’s voice has the same glossy smoothness of Ezra Koenig and introspective wordplay of Elvis Costello.
Anderson and co. are on their fourth, and some might say their best, album. It helps that Anderson has a Northwest super team to back him up. You may recognize drummer Colin Richey from Hey Marseilles or Jonathan Warman from Kris Orlowski. And finally, Matt Batey – the much shorter, but equally talented, counterpart to Anderson’s vocals – also has his own band.
While Anderson doesn’t quite have the vocal prowess as other Seattle frontmen such as Matt Bishop (Hey Marseilles) or Galen Disston (Pickwick), his songwriting is agile and gilded with confidence. He is even able to make words like “motherf*****” sound poetic in context.
“Reprieve, Reprieve” and “Good Religion” sound most like the Cataldo we knew three years ago. But for me, the album’s centerpiece is “Black Lamb.” Watching it live, Anderson dips to each dramatic piano strike. His awareness of space and musical silence build tension without any climax. Yet somehow, you’re left completely satisfied.
On the title track “Gilded Oldies”, Anderson playfully discusses the album’s theme: adulthood. “I thought I’d let you know that I have eloped / with new ideas on how the ending works. And I’m a big boy so I had to let them go.” Getting a little older and doing “whatever the fuck” he wanted this time around has made solid case for wisdom across the board.
Oh, and I can’t forget – he also does one of the best Drake covers out there.
