Audio By Carbonatix
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Leader of the indie rock band Cursive and his side project, The Good Life, Tim Kasher performs drunken, woebegone tales of relational dysfunction that have crowned him heir to Lou Barlow as the most emotionally besotted individual in indie rock. Like Barlow, Kasher shares unerring aim for the heart of the matter, such as the memory of the casual, early flirting that becomes a cruel joke by the end of a relationship. With a synth-fueled cabaret style, The Good Life recalls Tom Waits infused with a dark ’80s New Wave romanticism. Kasher’s self-flagellating lyricism (a trait he shares with Omaha buddy Conor Oberst) has enough self-awareness to avoid the maudlin, and is in fact sometimes slyly funny. It’s driven by a cinematic storytelling style that particularly comes out in the conceptual conceits that unite his albums. His latest, The Album of the Year, traces the course of a romance over the course of 12 months, and 12 songs.
