Send "Phosphorescent " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Pitchfork |
 n 2009, Phosphorescent released To Willie, an album dedicated to covering songs written or popularized by Willie Nelson. At the time it seemed like a stylistic sidetrack-- not only did Phosphorescent mastermind Matthew Houck dig more deeply into traditional country music than ever before, a few of his interpretations also evinced far more playfulness and fun than any of his original offerings. Surely, the next proper Phosphorescent effort would find Houck returning to the forlorn wilderness folk he'd howled out on his first three albums though, right?Not so fast: To Willie turned out to be more harbinger than lark. Phosphorescent's latest record, Here's to Taking It Easy-- with a full recording band in tow-- is by far the most conventional music he's ever made. Luckily, Houck and his cohorts compensate for a dip in idiosyncrasy by inhabiting the tropes of beer-soaked, sun-baked country-rock with fullness, commitment, and chops, all while finding enough room for Phosphorescent's trademark ragged lonesomeness. The opening "It's Hard to Be Humble (When You're From Alabama)" announces its shit-kicking intentions with hot guitar licks and blaring horn charts; it may be the first Phosphorescent song more impressive for what the music's doing than for what Houck's singing or how he's singing it, but it ain't the last. "I Don't Care If There's Cursing" is lyrically monotonous but boasts a vibrant bassline and sterling pedal steel while "We'll Be Here Soon" expertly recreates the feel of a late-night Mexican cantina (proving Houck's internalized Nelson exceedingly well). Then there's the closing "Los Angeles", which offers up a faithful facsimile (maybe a little too faithful) of Neil Young's bruised guitar heroics....full text |
| Popmatters |
| On Matthew Houck’s (aka Phosphorescent) last all-original full length album, 2007’s Pride, Houck looked inward to his own personal struggles and chose to record the album entirely on his own. Since then, Houck has opened up a bit more, working with a full band on his 2009 Willie Nelson tribute album, To Willie, and incorporating that full band sound on his latest album, Here’s to Taking It Easy. Opening track “It’s Hard to Be Humble (When You’re From Alabama)” serves as a perfect reminder as to why Phosphorescent can now be considered more of a band instead of Houck’s personal singer/songwriter vehicle. With lively spurts of percussion, triumphant horns, and bluesy riffs, Houck belts out a fastly-sung, tour-weary chorus of “Baby, all these cities, ain’t they all starting to look all the same?” If this chorus appeared on Pride, there’s no doubt it would have more of a melancholic tone to it, but with the wall of slide guitars, tambourine, and horns backing it, Houck has figured out a way to make even his most depressing lyrics sound uplifting. Even the swell of vocal harmonies that close out the following track “Nothing Was Stolen (Love Me Foolishly)”, further underscore the full band dynamic that Houck has achieved. Although most of the album may appear to be positive, there are several moments that recall Houck’s darker side and his ability to write a personal song and turn it around into one with universal themes. Besides the intimate ukulele melodies on “We’ll Be Here Soon”, it’s the wistful alt-country twang of “The Mermaid Parade” that is really one of the highlights here. With lyrics such as “Our hearts were on fire / Only two weeks ago / Our bodies were like live wires / Down on a beach in Mexico,” “The Mermaid Parade” is sung from the point of view of an individual recalling a lost relationship and wondering if his ex-girlfriend is still thinking of him too, a theme that plenty of listeners can certainly relate to....full text |
| Treblezine |
| Phosphorescent's Matthew Houck has undergone a gradual yet consistent artistic metamorphosis since releasing his 2003 debut, A Hundred Times or More. His journey has taken him through Neutral Milk Hotel-style indie folk (2005's Aw Come Aw Wry), eerily spare and ethereal Americana (2007's Pride), and even a Willie Nelson covers album (2009's To Willie). Yet, for a musician who has displayed such a penchant for playful transformation and an implicit aim never to release the same record twice, however, Houck has maintained a quiet intensity that makes Phosphorescent's output wholly unique. His cracked and rustic pipes are weathered and imperfect, a soft and expressive element that lends a beating heart to his compositions, whether threadbare or layered with drums and lap steel. Here's To Taking It Easy, Phosphorescent's fifth album, leans squarely toward bigger arrangements and grander statements. It's less folk, and more rock, though that Willie Nelson influence has most certainly crept in and inflected these nine tracks with a country twang. While a bright and brassy country rock spirit looms large, however, Houck himself remains a vulnerable and wounded protagonist in its soft center. This juxtaposition is most glaring in leadoff track "It's Hard to Be Humble (When You're From Alabama)", a wondrous standout that kicks open the saloon doors with a flashy burst of piano, electric guitar and horns that sounds, to me, like a grand party, Nashville style. Houck, himself, however, sounds weary and jaded, singing "baby, all these cities, ain't they all starting to look all the same." It's a simple riff on the familiar trope of the road anthem, though his attitude grows a bit cockier by the second verse, singing, "if I'm talking to you mister, then you best be writing down what I say." When the tempo drops a bit, however, Houck tends to delve deeper into heartbreak and loneliness, two elements that have always made successful partners with country music. On the beautiful "Tell Me Baby (Have You Had Enough)", he rhymes the titular refrain with laments such as "I know sometimes I can play too rough," though the weeping lap steel and growing resignation make the unspoken answer to his question painfully clear. Meanwhile, the lush and boisterous ballad "The Mermaid Parade" is a lovely narration of a relationship falling apart: " came back to this city/ And you stayed home in L.A./ And our two years of marriage/ In two short weeks/ Somehow just slipped away." Yet, instead of finding therapy in booze or pills, Houck simply takes pleasure in watching the female specimens in the traditional New York parade to which the song alludes....full text |
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