Title: Interesting but extremely uneven
Product review: Those anticipating a reprise of the turbulent hip venacular may want to give this debatable solo disc a wide berth. Clearly not the musical force behind his day gig, Downie relies on resonant background effects and airy engineering to add heft to some rather rickety compositions. Lilting ballads "Vancouver Divorce", "Trick Rider", and "Lofty Pines" are the keepers here, along with a sloppy garage rocker called "Canada Geese". The remaining songs on this drawn-out release are little more than fussed-over filler; genre pieces like "Elaborate" and "Every Irrelevance" are generic and uninspired, while the ponderous spoken-word segments - complete with Director Atom Egoyan on classical guitar - are likely to alienate any listener not incontestably enamoured with, well, ponderous spoken-word segments.
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