“To not become a cynic or a curmudgeon, that’s the great challenge
at the time of my life I’m at right now. That’s probably what I’m
trying to do with these songs – to meet those difficulties and
overcome them.” – Lloyd Cole
This statement to an interviewer about his latest CD release,
“Antidepressant,” pretty well sets the stage for the mellow, toned-
down Cole who appears more ready than ever to distance himself from
his rock and roll days with The Commotions.
Each carefully crafted song on “Antidepressant” makes a statement
about the reflective, navel-gazing outlook Cole has developed as time
presses on.
“I don’t have the will to digest a lot of novelty anymore,” Cole
says of his maturation as a singer/songwriter.
In the lead song, “The Young Idealists,” offers insight into Cole’s
present state of mind, and most importantly, sets the overall mood
for “Antidepressant.”
“I know I said I favored peaceful revolution/but that was when we
were the young idealists/the young idealists/raging through the
coffee shops and bars/ make believe the world was really ours/ still
supposing we could make a difference/then we bought into the neocon
economic dream/We were trading in our futures we believed in/the
young idealists/Careening through the markets to the mall/venturing
we could have it all/still supposing we could make a difference.
The remaining 10 cuts are just as insightful and beautifully
orchestrated by Cole. Together they serve as proof that some old
rockers do grow up and mature.
And all that “Commotion” in the past was really about finding peace
and comfort in later life.
Publication: Texarkana Gazette
Publication date: 30/04/07