The Fiery Furnaces: Widow City : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

If you’ve ever heard an eccentric old person talk (and talk) about her life, you’ll understand the magic -- and challenge -- of the Fiery Furnaces’ sixth record. On their experimental indie-pop opuses, the Brooklyn brother-sister duo sings quirky stories about Egyptian scholars and spiritual gurus, but the long-winded yarn-spinning only makes sense half of the time. Songwriter Matthew Friedberger claims Widow City was inspired by “an imagined Ouija board” that tells him what his sister Eleanor is thinking. Consequently, the lyrics often sound like sibling in-jokes: On “Navy Nurse,” which swings between muddy blues rock and orchestral pop, Eleanor sings, “It’s nice to go nautical when choosing a doormat.” Factor in the music’s kitchen-sink vibe -- anchored by a Chamberlin keyboard that triggers tape loops of various instruments -- and the album is a lot to take in. But the task can be rewarding: Check out the woozy space jam “Duplexes of the Dead.” There’s likely a subliminal message buried in its psychedelic synths, and it’ll take some great drugs to uncover it.