Richard Edwards Richard Edwards Sings The Margot & The Nuclear So And So's Songbook In Quarantine, Vol. 2 (Vellum-Clear)

Last year, the LA Review of Books called Richard Edwards “the most underrated songwriter of our time” when he released the first volume of Richard Edwards Sings the Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s Songbook in Quarantine, featuring newly reimagined songs from the ‘00s indie buzz band’s vast and volatile repertoire. Skeptics may consider the re-recording of beloved material from the past as nothing more than fan-service, but Edwards has made it clear that this is not the case by including reimagined deep cuts and b-sides rather than the staple hits that fans came to expect from Margot’s live shows. This pattern continues on Songbook in Quarantine, Volume 2. These are not Margot’s greatest hits; this is a ragtag roster from those Margot days reincarnated for a new era. He and his band are no longer imagining a dark future; we are in that dark future quite firmly now. Lyrics that said one thing fifteen years ago can be heard saying quite different things now. Songs that felt ramshackle or loose have been tightened up and allowed to age gracefully, and to reintroduce themselves outside of old parameters. Edwards’ voice continues to age like fine wine, too, and some of these recordings stake their claim as new definitive versions of songs that fans first fell in love with a decade ago. He is joined on Songbook in Quarantine Volume 2 by Dave Palmer, Jay Bellerose, Benji Lysaght, Perla Batalla, and Erin Rae. Diehard fans will cheer for obscurities like “Blinkin’ Fuzz” and “Go To Sleep You Little Creep,” while fans both new and old will clamor for the grand finale of “Broadripple is Burning,” a song streamed over 30 million times since its debut in 2008. Only, this time, it sounds better than ever. Side A: