noise++ with matty & derek

In Old English, incubi and succubi (the demons that seduce sleeping mortals) were known as ‘mare,’ and such nightly visitations were known as ‘nightmares.’

So when I say that Scarlett Johansson’s new album of Tom Waits covers Anywhere I Lay My Head sounds like nightmare, I’m not being an asshole — it’s the type of nightmare I’d like to have. The dreamlike instrumentation orchestrated by producer Dave Sitek has a smothering, surreal but inarguably erotic feel to it. Many of the songs have a languid, dark-carnival sensibility that would suit them well for a soundtrack to Ray Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes.

Critical reception has been largely lukewarm, with most reviewers focusing on Johansson’s admittedly mediocre voice. But the selling point of this album isn’t Johansson’s vocal prowess. Her distant, lazy voice hides behind layers of organs, percussion and brass on many of the tracks, but the result nothing to complain about.

When actors make a foray into music, the results range from laughable kitsch to painful failure, but Anywhere I Lay My Head actually manages to stand out as a fantastic album in its own right. It’s perhaps more a testament to the songwriting ability of Tom Waits and the production skill of Dave Sitek, but without the sexy, old-soul persona that Johansson brings to the table, it wouldn’t be the same.

Verdict: We’re not typically in the habit of rating things on any sort of objective scale here at noise++, but I’m going to assign the album an arbitrary 8/10.

And of course, a clip of Falling Down, off Anywhere I Lay My Head: