Love and Its Opposite (Bonus Track Version)

iTunes Review

Tracey Thorn has always possessed the kind of heart-stirring voice that careful listeners find so endearing. Her work with Everything But the Girl brought the material to life and her 2007 solo album, Out of the Woods turned her towards electro-pop that made for exciting, cutting-edge sounds but which left the beautiful longing in her voice behind. Now, working with the same producer, Ewan Pearson, she records this set of piano-based rainy-day ballads that are completely satisfying. “Oh, The Divorces!” and “Long White Dress” start things with a gentle prodding before “Hormones” kicks up a clubland backbeat. “Why Does The Wind?” equally steps it up. But tracks such as “Singles Bar” and Lee Hazlewood’s “Come On Home To Me,” sung with Jens Lekman, are spiked with a tentative fear, a sense that maybe aging is the perfect answer to youth’s restless ennui. “Swimming” is exactly the kind of tune one expects to hear from Thorn, a polished and mature piece of writing and performance. However, the bonus cuts, demos recorded in Berlin, are equally entrancing and prove Thorn is always at the ready to deliver a first-rate performance.