A Hundred Lovers continues
Timbuk 3's evolution from punk folkies to funk populists. The harmonies are still raw and haunting, but they are now supported by scratchy, repetitive guitar lines and
James Brown-style funky drumming. The group's folkie origins leak in around the edges in the form of MacDonald's harmonica and an almost constant acoustic guitar presence, but most of this stuff is downright danceable; "Not Yet Gone" generates a tensile reggae-derived groove that sounds a lot like
Elvis Costello's "Watching the Detectives," while "Just Wanna Funk with Your Mind" -- which suffers from an uncharacteristic lyrical obviousness -- manages to sound simultaneously like
King Crimson and a low-budget Robert Palmer (that's a compliment). Lyrically, their worldview is as grim as ever and their delivery is still pretty acerbic; when MacDonald sings "I can't get cynical about you," you've got to understand that that's her version of sweet nothings. Their astringent wordplay can be highly effective at cutting through layers of rhetorical crap, but it can also devolve into simple-minded nastiness, as on a by-the-numbers antireligion screed called "Prey" ("Every time you say a prayer/You prey on me"). But overall, this is a mighty fine album, one which adds nicely to an already impressive catalog. ~ Rick Anderson