Neil Young could have settled for an easy life by now, but at 72, with 40-odd albums to his name, he still takes pleasure in confounding his fans. This second studio set with California quartet Promise of the Real features Young in gruff, Trump-baiting mode, plus blaxploitation-style funk, one spoken-word outburst and, strangest of all, a gaudy Latin romp. It shouldn’t work, but pleasingly, most of it does, thanks to the conviction of Young’s delivery. Throughout, he is either sardonic or enraged, his contempt for the Donald particularly evident on the stirring opener, Already Great, a Rockin’ in the Free World for the 21st century.
