Josh Hathaway:
My initial reaction after having heard the first six songs on the record was that I understood what was missing from The Rising. Magic is what was missing. Elements of the classic Springsteen sound long forgotten have returned in a big way on this record. I didn't realize how much I missed them until I heard them here — all the more reason his older albums need to be re-mastered, but that's another day on Donahue.
"Livin' in the Future" embodies more of what makes Springsteen great than any song he's written in the past quarter century. It might not be the best song in that span but it is a brilliant reminder of why we're still listening. "I'll Work For Your Love" combines the chaotic noise elements of "Born to Run" and the dramatic scope and inimitable piano work of Roy "The Professor" Bittan, all under the umbrella of an earnest-sounding title. "You'll Be Coming Down" is a pleasant album track that doesn't seem to be going anywhere special until Clarence "Big Man" Clemons breathes into it the fires of life.
The Rising — still a good record — seemed born of necessity. He felt compelled to make a post-9/11 record that embodied the entire scope of the emotions of that day. It was an impossible task and the album suffered under the oppressive weight of those efforts.
Magic doesn't suffer from those same ambitions, at least not musically. I don't know if Bruce had to be reminded by someone or if he came to this conclusion himself, but there is nothing wrong with Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band making records that sound like Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. The Seeger Sessions was a nice place to visit. Magic is where he lives, and the band is his neighbors.
Lyrically, Bruce is anything but content and that makes for a deeper, richer album. Springsteen has always written with a sense of bold purposes and big themes, and that serves him well on Magic. Unlike so many bad protest songs and protest records written in the post-9/11 world, Springsteen has not dated himself by tying his discontent to specific names and dates. These words can be applied to the Bush administration and the times we live in, but they could have been written 50 years ago and will be just as relevant 50 years from now. If I had to venture a guess, that is as much at the root of his discontent as anything else. A lifetime of observation and activism is in its second half and measurements of progress are taken in inches, not miles.
Article comments
1 - El Bicho
Good job all around, gang. I am curious to check out this album even though I didn't like the bland, boring "Radio Nowhere" at all.
The main thing I took away from this article is that Lisa doesn't write enough.
"but that's another day on Donahue."
How does the youngest member come off sounding like the oldest?
2 - Lisa McKay
Thank you, El B.
We like to think of Josh as being wise beyond his years :)
3 - JC Mosquito
Thoughtful and accurate - and I still wish we could combine all the Magic comments in one place.
4 - Josh
Agreed, El B. The dark cloud in the silver lining of our site's success has been the absence of Lisa and Eric Olsen as writers.
5 - Glen Boyd
I think that I've finally figured out the word that best describes this record:
It's bittersweet.
Its kind of like that same feeling you experience at something like a high school reunion, where you reconnect with long lost friends, only to realize that so much has happened that you can never really go home again.
Yes, I know I babble somewhat. I'm just home from a work related trip to Oregon, and in all likelihood I'm gonna have to go back next week.
But FUCK! I love this album!
I played in nonstop during my just completed (1:40 Am) trip.
So tell me, whats the initiation fee to join the roundtable (other than getting Josh to kinda like me like I think the rest of ya do?)
-Glen
6 - JC Mosquito
Bingo! Dead on, Glen. If there's a prize for shortest and most accurate review, it's yours fer shure.
Sk.
7 - mahesh
Ever felt you were dying of thirst and couldn't find a drop anywhere? I stopped listening to music when I stopped listening to Springsteen.That would be sometime after The Ghost of Tom Joad came out.I dont know what Magic means to Springsteen but to me it is that oasis that has quenched my thirst, atleast until the next great Sringsteen album.
8 - Ananda
Mahesh,
Do stop by at Devil's and Dust and We Shall Overcome.
You'll be more than pleasantly surprised.
Take care.
9 - Josh
I just re-read this and it brought a big smile to my face. This is such a great record and writing about Bruce with you two is about as much fun as writing can be.