Great American Music Hall

FACE THE TRUTH unveils a new STEPHEN MALKMUS. His exuberance has given way to bliss, and his performances are more disarming and electrifying than ever. The volatile SM who sang "Water and a Seat" as if he were Muhammad Ali extolling his punch and shuffle is missing. On FACE THE TRUTH we hear a beseeching, almost quizzical SM who has - to generalize - returned to his first influences. And he has downplayed his guitar virtuosity behind his singing and arranging.

SM has relaxed. And he refuses to relax. He still delivers to his audience intricate scores, precisely performed. He finds room for the full range of Americana: country to pop, jazz and disco. In fact the fake disco of "Kindling for the Master" owes a lot to SM's 1990's vision of sexuality, framed in pumping groaning funk. He seems as content with a punching-bag beat as he does with the most fragile DIY jam. The search for new voices lead him to sounds in danger of becoming obsolete.