Whether as a founding member of rex or as a collaborator with Red Red Meat, Phil Spirito has been involved with some of the most consistently interesting musicians of the past two decades. For the last 10 years, however, he's been primarily recording under the name oRSo, a project that adopting a revolving-door policy for each release, allowing Phil's penchant for collaboration to flourish. This approach results in albums that, while ostensibly quiet, are actually quite large and enchanting by nature. Nowhere is this more true than on the newest release, Ask Your Neighbor.
When oRSo first started out, Phil chose to utilize his theory of "music shells" to bring his songs to life. This theory, which involves creating skeletons of each song and then recruiting musicians he felt could best bring them to life, has led to a total of six different incarnations of oRSo. As time passed, Phil began to favor a more collaborative approach in lieu to his "skeletons," encouraging each new member to contribute equally to the songwriting process. This synergistic approach culminates in one of the more arresting and subdued albums of the year. This time around, we see Phil bringing in such notables as Tim Rutili and Ben Massarella of Califone, among others.
Opening track "All Suffer Fools" sets the pace for the album as a slow-moving folk ditty that falls somewhere between despondency and sleepy assurance (though more toward the latter). Phil's voice moves parallel to these songs, drifting tranquilly along, with lovely accompaniment by the large group of musicians who he has enlisted. Although the songs move along at a recumbent pace, what's particularly striking is the music's immediacy: the cabal of musicians that Phil Spirito has joined together to flesh out these songs are simply ideal, and they've created a visceral soundscape without being showy. You can hear the musicians working together to bring the songs to fruition and genuinely enjoying the process.
Admittedly, the songs do not vary much in pace and tone to lend themselves easily to immediate distinction. But this complaint is really only suggesting that Ask Your Neighbor requires repeated and attentive listening. Indeed, without ostentation, oRSo has created yet another shimmering success, beautiful and autumnal in all the right areas.
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