Coke Machine Glow
There's no doubting a guaranteed audience for Gordon Downie's  solo debut among those startlingly loyalTragically Hipfans. There was also no doubt, based on the singer's kaleidoscopic  lyrics and feral performance style, that any Downie solo work would be  an enormous departure from the meat-and-potatoes rock of his day-job  band. YetCoke Machine Glowcomes by its weirdness honestly,  building on the singer's hunched-shoulder observations with spare,  mostly acoustic layers of piano, pump organ, strings, Telecaster, and  just about anything else at hand. And the record moves, alternately  pitching us junkyard country, a shambling tuba-goosed Mardi Gras-style  corker, and fragile folk and pop ballads, all tethered to Downie's  literate song-poems, on one occasion delivered spoken word, possibly  from the bottom of a well. Hip fans will note the ubiquitous homegrown  references but may be surprised by the gauzy sentimentality of "Trick  Rider," which finds one-timeEric's TripmemberJulie Doironshadowing Downie's hushed lead vocal.Coke Machine Glowwon't  bewitch the high-fiving throng for which "Courage" or "New Orleans Is  Sinking" stand as beacons to Canadian-rock glory. But it's fascinating  to follow Downie as he wanders down these various paths, always pausing  to glance around and take notes for future use.--Kim Hughes