No Limit to Our Love

Wherein rock critics' ongoing bout of Feistmania is found to be entirely justified

A A A Comments By Garrett Kamps Tuesday, Apr 24 2007

Parents and children! Democrats and Republicans! Dogs and cats! Rejoice! For here we have a record for everyone! If you don't like Leslie Feist's new indie-folk long-player, then guess what? You're a terrorist! You cork your bat! You root for the fascist Yankees! Asshole!

photo: Mary Rozzi

If you don't love her, the terrorists have won

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Feist
The Reminder
Interscope

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Because holy moly, what a great batch of simple, precisely arranged love songs—expertly produced, delectably sung—The Reminderturns out to be. Feist sounded capable on her debut, 2004's Let It Die, but here she sounds like a lemon meringue pie: fluffy, sour, and sweet all at once. You know a vocalist is in a zone when just hearing her take a breath is a mini-romance all its own. Throw a dart, hit an example: "Limit to Your Love" courses like something underwater, delicately churning with doo-wop backing vocals, a violin, a bassoon (?), and our heroine turning the lyric "Right down the road" into its own little journey, a carriage-and-buggy situation, stealin' kisses and shit.

Her surfeit of talent notwithstanding, Feist's major-label deal is likely the result of the suits hoping for another Norah Jones. Well, they found her, and that ain't a bad thing. (Terrorists don't like Norah Jones, either.) Feist projects that perfect balance of courage and vulnerability, her lines charging out proudly before retreating, wounded. Throw another dart: "It's impossible to tell/How important someone was/And what you might have missed out on/And how he might have changed it all/And how you might have changed it all for him/Did I miss out on you?" Listening to this thing is like watching a pitcher throw a no-hitter.

Feist plays Town Hall with Grizzly Bear June 11 and 12, the-townhall-nyc.org.

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