They don’t come more unlikely than this long-distance collaboration between the Scottish-based former Belle and Sebastian chanteuse and the ever-versatile Screaming Trees/Queens of the Stone Age vocalist and LA resident.
Aptly monikered, Ballad of the Broken Seas is said to be heavily inspired by the legendary Nancy Sinatra/Lee Hazlewood albums of the '60s.
While that influence is clearly apparent, there are hints too of some of the other legendary male/female duets in recent history, including Johnny Cash/June Carter and Gram Parsons/Emmylou Harris. One song. ‘Black Mountain’ even boasts a strong Kylie and Nick Cave feel about it (i.e. it's in the vein of ‘Where The Wild Roses Grow’).
But what really makes this charming album work is the contrast between Lanegan’s rough and ready vocal style and Campbell’s angelic, almost ethereal tones which seem to float somewhere beyond the mix.
The pace is, in the main, downbeat and languid, progressing like a funeral procession. The nearest thing to an up-tempo pop song is the sublimely catchy ‘Honey Child What Can I Do?’ which is so steeped in ‘60s country textures that it could’ve been penned by Jimmy Webb for a Glen Campbell album.
In fact influences abound here: the title track has a strong Leonard Cohen feel about it, the string arrangements on the partly-instrumental ‘It’s Hard To Kill A Bad Thing’ recalls Nick Drake’s ‘Northern Sky’ while Hank Williams’ ‘Ramblin’ Man’ is reworked into a shuffle resembling something from Tom Waits’ Bone Machine. Elsewhere, the sinister Duane Eddy guitar and heavily reverbed vocals on ‘False Husband’ would make it perfect for the soundtrack to a David Lynch movie.
The arrangement is stripped down on ‘Do You Wanna Come Walk With Me’, an innocent-sounding love song that contains the chilling line: “There’s a crimson bird flying when I go down on you”. A sombre ballad, ‘The Circus Is Leaving Town’, provides the perfect ending to this gorgeous, sepia-toned, late-night record.