Chris Isaak – Speak Of The Devil

If there’s one thing you can say regarding Speak Of The Devil, it’s that it’s absolutely perfect. Of course people are going to make the obvious Roy Orbison and Elvis Presley comparisons, when they should be considering other lo-fi gunslingers such as The Pixies, Dean Wareham, Todd Rundgren, The Everly Brothers, and a host of others who know how to fill a song with emotion and nuance without getting overly oppressed with soaring guitars and static flights of fancy.

The music found on Speak Of The Devil is certainly heart warming, filled with a sense of loss or loneliness and at times embroiled with frustrations, but not in the sense that the music drags the listener into a burrow of ennui; more that that Chris notes that he’s been done wrong and then shrugs it off with swagger, creating a surfin’ rockabilly soundtrack filtering from his Woody as he sets of for the beach to catch some waves and wash himself clean.

And therein lies some of the brilliance of Chris Isaak, he presents us with songs of life, along with the troubles that can cloud an otherwise perfect day. Yet with all this emotion, laced with sonic variations and considered guitar work that you’re not going to expect, you’re never left feeling down and out, as Chris always leaves you with a topped off tank of gas, headlights with a steady beam, and a full moon that’s rising off in the distance like a giant silver dollar.

*** The Fun Facts: As to the album's title, to "Speak of the Devil" is the short form of the idiom "Speak of the devil and he doth appear" (or its alternative form "speak of the devil and he shall appear."). It is used when an object of discussion unexpectedly becomes present during the conversation. It can also be used about a topic that quickly becomes relevant, such as the onset of rain or a car breaking down. Used in this sense it can be seen as an alternative to the phrase "tempting fate". The phrase lost its overt message during the 19th century, during which it became a warning against eavesdroppers ("No good of himself does a listener hear, / Speak of the devil he's sure to appear"), and by the 20th century had taken on its present meaning.

Review by Jenell Kesler