Steve Lieberman – Melancholia Falling

Steve Lieberman – Melancholia Falling / 2007 Self / 21 Tracks / http://www.gangstarabbi.com / Reviewed 23 June 2007

Steve Lieberman is pretty much the one constant that I have had in the last three or so years of reviewing. There is not a six or eight month stretch of time where I do not receive a Lieberman CD. One has to give eir kudos for sticking around after so many negative words. This CD looks to be different than past Lieberman albums in that there are only two covers on the disc, where Lieberman works on a Mark Knopfler (“Tunnel of Love”) and a Jesus and Mary Chain (“April Skies”) song. While the disc is ostensibly about Lieberman’s depression, one cannot hear any sort of sadness in the track called “Falling Into Sadness”.
What results is another quick, punk-infused song that draws off of the tempo of the Batman track with screamed-out vocals and flittering flute throughout. The first track where it sounds like sadness and depression are affecting Lieberman has to be “Melancholia”. The track is still created under a broad punk framework, but the slower tempo and more strung-out lines in the instrumentation shows more of the disc’s theme than during “Falling Into Sadness”. In regards to the actual music on “Melancholia Falling”, one notices the restoration of the flute as a focal point of the disc. It seems like in the last few albums that the flute’s presence has been muted, but with each subsequent salvo of this disc, it seems to be front and center. As for what is still problematic in Lieberman’s style on this album, one need only look to the distortion.
This is an issue I’ve had over the course of a number of albums, and I believe all Lieberman would need to do is create a less grating distortion to rectify this issue. I can see the necessity of having something to go against the smoother vocals and flute, but the grit present in the guitar’s distortion is a little over the top. The inclusion of a little bit of percussion during “Lovergirl For An Hour” is an interesting change to Lieberman’s traditional sound, and it actually is enough of a change-up from the norm that it energizes me to listen to the rest of the disc’s 21 tracks. Lieberman is still evolving, and the ropy, full sounds of a track like “Love You In Sadness” should show that. I am sure there will be more albums in the future from Lieberman, so hopefully a little more evolution can take place.

Top Tracks: Love You in Sadness, My Last Rock Show

Rating: 4.9/10