Tiny Cities

Sun Kil Moon is primarily a solo vehicle for Mark Kozelek, formerly of the Red House Painters. Kozelek once recorded an entire album (What’s Next to the Moon) of tender acoustic renditions of Bon Scott-era AC/DC songs — and it worked. On Tiny Cities he deconstructs 11 Modest Mouse tunes in a similarly subdued way. Performed mostly on acoustic guitar with spare accompaniment from his backing band, he slows the tunes down and explores the lyrical cracks for stray bits of meaning and nuance, often finding mournful undercurrents not apparent — or not intended — in the original versions. Moody and languid, the tempo varies only slightly throughout the entire album, lulling you in before fading out a brief 30 minutes later. It’s not necessary to be familiar with Modest Mouse’s music to appreciate Tiny Cities, as the essence of the songs are effectively captured without even a reference to their jagged, jangly sound. Kozelek obviously recognizes Isaac Brock as a kindred idiosyncratic spirit, allowing him to crawl inside the evocative lyrics and emerge with something inspired and personal.