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The new Elvis Costello LP, Trust, represents a strange holding pattern, crossing up any expectations of a "New Elvis" by rehashing most of the past formulas that have pushed him to the forefront of rock and roll. One of his problems may be his obsession with having a big AM hit in America, as was reported in most trade magazines around the time Armed Forces came out.
But Costello is too much of an individualist to pander to only commercial expectations. His voice will never cut it with those who want the sterility and non-expressionism of most of today's fare, and while a good deal of the anger that tinged his first three records has disappeared, he still cuts a bit too close to the truth for any of these songs to have a chance of going Top 40.
Costello is uncommonly artful. He sketches his characters with rough wit, and something more — lyrical and vocal twists that make inarticulate characters unwittingly reveal themselves. In "You'll Never Be A Man" he sings "you need protection from the physical act of conversation," and his trademark paranoia develops into a more overt misogyny on "Clubland" when he shrieks:
They'll lead you halfway to paradise
They'll lead you halfway to bliss
The ladies inventions never seemed like this.
At that point in the album he sounds like he's ready to kick ass, yet Elvis can find tenderness in the oddest ways. The best and most moving song on Trust is "Shot With His Own Gun." His voice set only against an acoustic piano, another of his personae sadly sings:
What's on his mind now is anyone's guess
Losing his touch now with each caress
Spend every evening looking so appealing
It comes without warning, he eats without feeling
Shot with his own gun.
Costello's backup band, the Attractions, have mastered a rhythmic groove that's both relaxed and assertive, as if the group were just kicking off the first of a four-set night. The songs are sparked by biting guitars, and Steve Nieve has come up with some brilliant piano arrangements.
Producer Nick Lowe continues a trend he set on last year's LP, Get Happy, with his use of the "quick fade." No song has a fade-out lasting longer than seven seconds, leaving little of the album's 42 minutes wasted.
The major problem is that Costello's songwriting seems contrived at times and too cute for his own good. On "New Lace Sleeves" he deadpans "Good manners and bad breath will get you nowhere," which is one of the worst ironies I've heard since Rupert Holmes left the air.
On previous efforts he used subtle humor to balance his frustration and to keep himself from running amuck in self-pity. But with most of the angst cut out of Trust, he's hinging the record on his word plays — most of which are far too obvious.
"Fish 'N' Chip Paper" seems to be based solely on the catch chorus "You better speak up now if you want peace later / 'cause yesterday's news is tomorrow's fish 'n' chip paper." It's not a bad phrase, and I probably even chuckled when I heard it, but Elvis at his best is an artist far too sensitive to be laughed at.
If the ironies sound a bit removed, the subject matter is even more obscure, and if titles like "Clubland" and "Big Sister's Clothes" don't suggest a private world, try lyrics like "Going off limits / going off duty / going off rails / and going off booty."
"Luxembourg" is an uptempo R&B stomper, and may be the only outstanding song on side one.
One of the more frustrating songs in the set is "From A Whisper To A Scream," a rousing rocker which has the potential to be an absolute classic. Unfortunately (and strangely), most of the lead vocals are handled by the wimpy lead singer of Squeeze, Glen Tilbrook, and while the tune is still catchy, it looses a good deal of its potential.
"Watch Your Step" is an enjoyable pop tune, but like so many of the other cuts on the album, it sounds far too reminiscent of other woks he's done, as it's virtually a rewrite of last year's "Secondary Modern."
After I had listened to the record for the third time, it bothered me that everything reminded me of a song he had done before. "White Knuckles" sounds like "King's Horse" and a number of the new songs seem to borrow the same organ riff he used on "Clowntime Is Over" from Get Happy. Elvis reveals little of himself on this album, and even the solo piano backing he uses on "Shot With His Own Gun" is a style he had used previously on live EP versions of "Alison" and "Accidents Will Happen."
At times he seems to want to keep everyone happy, and the results are depressingly impersonal, as though he assumed that wider acceptance could only be gained by burying himself — not only as a writer but as a persona. Luckily, he doesn't take to retirement easily, as "Lovers Walk," "From A Whisper To A Scream" and "Big Sister's Clothes" attest.
Stylishly isolated but no longer alienated, Costello has come a long way from his beginning, when he wore little to distinguish himself but a sneer. Now we're lucky to get a glimpse of his eyes.
Elvis' strong point has always been his willingness to be honest; sometimes about himself, always with himself. That's why Trust isn't so much a lie — it's just beside the point.
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