David Byrne

"American Utopia"

Todomundo/Nonesuch

Release date: March 9

Genre: Alternative/Indie

Review: David Byrne has been asking questions and looking for answers since the first Talking Heads album over 40 years ago, and "American Utopia" continues that healthy habit.

His last release billed as a solo album was "Grown Backwards" from 2004 and from then on Byrne's been releasing joint ventures with folks like St. Vincent, Fatboy Slim and Brian Eno.

The new album is Byrne's alone but it is "based on original tracks" by Eno, who also plays on several of the tunes, while two songs are co-written, performed and produced with Brooklyn-based Daniel Lopatin aka Oneohtrix Point Never. Go figure.

Whatever the songs' origin, the result is a mix of some anxious, highly-charged moments tempered by sweet melodies and gentle rhythms.

In his liner notes, Byrne says "music is a kind of model — it often tells us or points us toward how we can be." On "American Utopia," you can find questions and reflections about how we are and how we can be. Here's hoping the path between the two is not a road to nowhere.

                                                                         — The Associated Press