New Album Review: Elvis Costello & The Imposters- The Boy Named If

Elvis Costello & The Imposters- The Boy Named If

Label: Capitol

Producers: Elvis Costello and Sebastian Krys

It’s been over half a century since Elvis Costello shook the rock scene to its core with his unique blend of pub rock spirit and punk rock attitude. And even as he closes in on his eighth decade on the planet, there are still incredibly few artists who can match his unbridled energy on stage or on record. This fact remains just as evident on this, his thirty second album, which gloriously unfolds as the most pure rock and roll album we are likely to hear all year. Launching with the unabashed command of opening track “Farewell, OK”, Costello and the Imposters rarely let up on his classic brand of frenetic musical rampage for one single moment throughout. This is an album to spin during your next weekend rave-up, or weekday bender for that matter, and at a volume that will get you blacklisted from your neighborhood. It’s undeniably rowdy. It’s unapologetically bawdy. It’s superbly played, and it’s sung without a single ounce of restraint or inhibition. On the rare moments where Costello turns inward, as he does on tracks like the Nicole Atkins feature, “My Most Beautiful Mistake” or the closing track, “Mr. Crescent”, they ring even more powerfully and prophetically because of the manic joy and revelry that they’re surrounded by. An exhilarating rock thrill ride, The Boy Named If is a masterful and joyous late career triumph from one of the most fertile rock legends still working today.

Track Listing:

1. “Farewell, OK” (Elvis Costello)
2. “The Boy Named If” (Costello)
3. “Penelope Halfpenny” (Costello)
4. “The Difference” (Costello)
5. “What If I Can’t Give You Anything But Love?” (Costello)
6. “Paint the Red Rose Blue” (Costello)
7. “Mistook Me For A Friend” (Costello)
8. “My Most Beautiful Mistake” featuring Nicole Atkins (Costello)
9. “Magnificent Hurt” (Costello)
10. “The Man You Love to Hate” (Costello)
11. “The Death of Magic Thinking” (Costello)
12. “Trick Out the Truth” (Costello)
13. “Mr. Crescent” (Costello)