Grown Backwards
With 2003'sOnce In A Lifetimebox set stirring old feelings for theTalking Heads' intelligent and angular pop music, this album could not arrive at a more appropriate time. After years of experimenting with salsa and strings, David Byrne returns with a cohesive record that catches him at his incohesive best: the stream-of-consciousness lyrics, the sly rhythms, the unexpected bursts of melody. Like recent works byElvis CostelloandDavid Bowie,Grown Backwardsrepresents a return to form, particularly on leftfield songs like "Tiny Apocalypse" and "Dialog Box," which could have easily fit alongside the classics on his former band's retrospective. Meawhile, a duet withRufus Wainwrighton a cover of Bizet's "Au Fond du Temple Saint" points the way forward. --Aidin Vaziri