The Lilac Time - Lilac6 (2001)

The Lilac Time's sixth record, with its unimaginative title but perfectly
descriptive subtitle ("Beautiful Despair and Other Folktales"), runs no
risk of disappointing fans. It houses no less than six songs that rate
favorably with the group's best material. The remainder isn't anything to
thumb your nose at, either. What it lacks in surprises and growth is more
than made up for in consistency and craft. And while a quick scan of the
sleeve presents you with several "hastily placed" cultural curios, the
record is hardly the reflective/nostalgic/"let's take stock of our lives"
buggy wreck it sort of advertises itself to be. Chipper folk-rock tunes
like "This Morning" (featuring great interplay between the vocals of
Stephen Duffy and Claire Worrall) and "Jeans + Summer" (featuring -- oh
drat -- at least one Barenaked Lady on background vocals) carry more than
enough fresh-faced melody to knock off the less experienced ranks of adult
alternative radio favorites. Stephen Duffy's songwriting remains studied,
eloquent, and witty, and "Entourage" witnesses the gifted veteran at his
most biting and sarcastic: "now that we're through with morality, can I
sleep with your wife?" Throw in a couple jigs penned by Stephen's brother
Nick, and you have another fine Sunday afternoon record. Aside from the
misguided and interruptive foray into cyber beats during the otherwise lazy
twang of "Come Home Everyone," hardly anything can deny lilac6's durable,
out-of-time nature.