Jimmer
"God Like the Sun"
(Chief Injustice (ASTERISK)(ASTERISK)(ASTERISK){)
In the '80s, Jimmer Podrasky led the Rave-Ups, a proto- Americana band that should have been bigger than it was. In 2014, after nearly 25 years and some tough times, he returned with the terrific "The Would-Be Plans." Now, he's back again with the even better "God Like the Sun."
"I think I believe, but I'm not sure," Jimmer sings on the title track of an album that deals straight-on with adult concerns. He laments being "Half a Dad," and "You Can Count on Me" (a duet with Syd Straw) features a bickering but devoted couple in an echo of classic country male-female pairings. And on "Rollercoaster USA," he confesses, "Some days ... I'm happy living with unhappiness."
Like the best pop artists, however, Jimmer never makes any of this soul-baring sound ponderous or solipsistic. Working again with producer-drummer Mitch Marine of Dwight Yoakam's band, he frames the songs with full-bodied, instantly infectious arrangements that tunefully blend roots, rock, and pop sounds. Despite any self-doubt this "Catholic boy" might express, the music reveals a confident artist in full command of his craft.
_ Nick Cristiano
