Underdressed at the Symphony

Album review

Atlantan singer-songwriter Faye Webster is no stranger to blending genres. Like its predecessors, this fifth studio album consistently mixes influences from indie-folk, indie-pop, and jazz, adding hints of R&B ("Feeling Good Today"), rockier sounds ("He Loves Me Yeah!"), and even string arrangements ("Underdressed at the Symphony," "Lifetime"). The band—featuring Bryan Howard on bass, Charles Garner on drums, Nels Cline (Wilco) on guitar, and Matt Stoessel on pedal steel—undeniably deserves a shoutout.  They steep the record in a country-style melancholia native to Webster's southern American home. Everyone is riding the same wavelength, creating a relaxing yet subtly intricate sound with instruments that interweave conversationally, calling and responding to each other while Webster's charming voice floats above everything. Its dreamy quality is emphasised by autotune in "Feeling Good Today" and "Lego Ring," on which she is joined by fellow Atlantan and long-time friend Lil Yachty, who adds distorted harmonies and his own juvenilely humorous verse: "Me and you are the dream team/ Always together like string beans.

The album is peppered with surprises that keep it engaging, from tempo changes ("But Not Kiss," "Lego Ring") to interesting percussive accents ("Thinking About You," "eBay Purchase History") to word painting in the string crescendo that interrupts the title track. Underdressed at the Symphony was named after Faye Webster's impromptu visits to symphony concerts as she dealt with a break-up. The juxtaposition aptly reflects the record's understated and easy-going vibe, infused with a certain grandiosity and complexity led by the use of grand piano and coupled with the wistful wit that always permeates her confessional lyrics ("I'm depriving myself of happiness, something I'm really good at."). At times, Underdressed drifts away into repetitive refrains, but provided they are not opposed to getting lost in the band's lethargic lyricism—glossed in her ethereal vocals—Faye Webster fans will not be disappointed. © Ciara Rivers/Qobuz