DEVENDRA BANHART - Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon
Few recent musicians have generated as enigmatic and prolific a profile as Banhart. As likely to erupt into neo-hippie babble as he is to protest his being one, he is an artist whose mischievous toying with his image (not to mention his seemingly unedited song output) often threatens to usurp the sincerity of his music. The 16-song, wildly eclectic Smokey isn't going to change any of that, but does image really matter? When you close your eyes and just listen, Banhart's strengths are a lot clearer. He is an excellent singer, and an engaging musical chameleon and when he hits the mark, the results are pretty superb.
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