Feist – Multitudes

Though Leslie Feist came up in the Canadian Invasion of the aughts, and had a hit iPod commercial song in “1234”, all of that was a long time ago, and she’s since become more of an intimate auteur, taking her time with carefully crafted records. That continues with Multitudes, and even if it isn’t the amazing Feist you cried to more than once, it is another special release.

The key to much of Multitudes is Feist embracing hope, starting with the glowing opener “In Lightning”. Even as she strips down her sound throughout most of the album, it’s not in sorrow but rather a world-wise, earned hope, such as on the charming folk of “The Redwing”. There are moments where she goes for a bigger, weirder sound that perhaps one would have wanted more of, like “I Took All of My Rings Off” and particularly the fuzzier intimacy of the penultimate “Calling All the Gods”. But even the closing “Song For Sad Friends” encourages people not to deny their sadness, but be who they are.

Leslie Feist has long become a true artiste in the non-ironic sense of the word, veering away from pop stardom and towards her own intimate echo. And now veering into the hope of Multitudes.