Momofuku

That's the title of the new Elvis Costello album and its pretty much the most exciting thing about it. I love the title because it sounds like a curse word. Now when people anger me I'll just tell them to momofuku!

Other than the odd title that pays homage to the creator of ramen noodles, the album isn't much to write home about. It's not bad. It's not incredible. That alone leaves me feeling a bit let down. I wanted something to really get excited about, especially as Elvis has gone back to doing rock, which he had left for the last 3 albums. That's not to say there aren't some great tracks here, what I'm saying is that none of them have the power to really grab you. There's no Monkey To Man or 45 or Alibi.

Go Away is far and away my favorite track on the album, with Stella Hurt and Harry Worth coming in close behind. Turpentine is another decent one.

Do we want to go into the worst? My Three Sons, makes me want to toss my cookies. Well at least there's mention of the first son that most people don't know exists. After all, it's not as though Diana Krall, lovely though she is, is his first wife. I believe her number in the marital scheme of EC's life is 3.

I'm not sure if this is one of those albums that will eventually grow on me so that I'll play it constantly or one that will sit on the shelf. I'm disappointed as I find myself being in just about every new album I've bought lately, with my tried and true loves.

I suppose in a world where the quality of music is so low this is quite a great album, but from someone that expects truly great things from Elvis it falls a bit short. But hey, it's nowhere near as awful as Madonna's Hard Candy, so that's a plus. Sadly this album won't see the top of the charts, even though it's by far the superior album.