COURTNEY BARNETT
"Tell Me How You Really Feel"
BOTTOM LINE: Mastering melancholy moderation and wielding it well.
Only Courtney Barnett could manage to make a song called "Crippling Self-Doubt and a General Lack of Confidence" sound upbeat and still genuine.
It's a trick that the Aussie singer-songwriter goes to again and again on her potent sophomore album, "Tell Me How You Really Feel" (Milk!/Marathon Artists/Mom + Pop), turning her melancholy into well-crafted indie-rock anthems.
The chorus of "Crippling Self-Doubt" is a chant of "I don't know, I don't know anything," where Barnett is joined by The Breeders' Kim Deal and together they twist the uncertainty into a Pavement-like triumph.
Throughout "Tell Me How You Really Feel," Barnett points out the difficulties of really expressing yourself and she seemingly revels in the complexities. She mints new words to convey her emotions, like the opener "Hopefulessness," with its Nirvana-like riffs that both offer inspiration and channel sadness. "We learn it somewhere along the way," she sings. "Take your broken heart, turn it into art."
And she is clever enough to use a huge sonic palette to set her various moods. "Help Your Self" struts like a '70s rocker, while "Walkin' on Eggshells" is a sunny, folk-leaning number that calls to mind The Band, and "I'm Not Your Mother, I'm Not Your B(ASTERISK)(ASTERISK)(ASTERISK)(ASTERISK)" is a stomping glam rocker that features some great fuzzed-out guitar solos.
Barnett is at her best, though, on the early song-of-the-year candidate "Nameless, Faceless," where she rails against violence against women and social media trolls while maintaining a positive, empathetic outlook.
"You sit alone at home in the darkness with all the pent-up rage that you harness," she declares early on, while still raising the question of the danger women feel. "I'm real sorry bout whatever happened to you."
With "Tell Me How You Really Feel," Barnett solidifies her status as indie rock's brightest, must-see new star.
JAMES BAY
"Electric Light"
BOTTOM LINE: Daring new image to match the onetime rocker's new eclectic sound.
James Bay looks like a new man. The long hair and the trademark black fedora are gone, as is the straightforward rock of "Let It Go."
For his sophomore album "Electric Light" (Republic), Bay has combined bits of rock, R&B and EDM to create something new and compelling, as he writes about navigating relationships in the modern world.
His biggest risk may also be his most successful, with the late-night, booty-call complaint "Fade Out." Part Frank Ocean alt-soul, complete with effective falsetto, part '80s synth pop, Bay's worry about the state of his relationship _ "You only want me when the lights are down" _ is one of the freshest pop songs of the year.
The single "Pink Lemonade," which Bay debuted on "Saturday Night Live," successfully combines early Strokes shimmer with Euro swagger. "Wild Love" combines "Higher Love"-era Steve Winwood with James Blake-ian synth squiggles and classic Roxy Music style. With different production choices, "Sugar Drunk High" could easily be a country hit tomorrow.
With "Electric Light," Bay reintroduces himself as a forward-thinking artist with plenty to say. It's a makeover that goes well beyond his shorter hair and flashier shirts.
