Todd Snider Reviewed
Todd Snider
The Devil You Know
(New Door)
Packed with sarcasm and showcasing his continued development as a nouveau Steve Earle, Todd Snider returns.
Snider’s eighth album is a near fascimilie of his seventh, East Nashville Skyline, on John Prine’s Oh Boy imprint. For fans, that means a jukebox mix of early rock (“If Tomorrow Never Comes”), indictments of conservative, white America (“You Got Away With It”), and the acidic wit of “Take This Job And Shove It” addendum “Looking For A Job.” For anyone else, Snider’s return to major labels — New Door is a Universal boutique — is a toss-up. “Happy New Year” rolls along in Snider’s love-it-or-leave-it sing/speak, “Carla” dryly disparages an ex, and searing rockabilly on the title track sets the folk tones ablaze. There’s sure to be a phenomenal “best of” in the pipeline; it can’t possibly be this inconsistent.
— Kevin Keegan
Appearing: November 9th at Chicago Historical Society (1601 N. Clark) in Chicago.
