It took six years, but Cat Power is back with its first album of original material since The Greatest.

You’ve probably heard music from Cat Power even if you don’t think you have.
Do you remember the scene in the movie “Juno” where Bleeker joins Juno in her hospital bed and just holds her, post-baby? A tear trickles down Juno’s cheek and a soft cover of “Sea Of Love” plays in the background. The band that produced that cover is Cat Power.

See? Told you ya knew ’em.

The album’s opening track, “Cherokee,” begins with a quiet roll of the drums. From there, the song takes off with piano and, shortly after, Chan (pronounced like “Shawn”) Marshall’s distinctively slow, alto voice joins the cacophony. Her voice doesn’t sound very optimistic as she sings, “Never knew love like this / The wind, moon, the earth, the sky / Never knew pain like this / Everything die, then die.” Marshall’s voice finally drops monotony when the chorus rolls around.

It sounds like there could be three women singing at any given time in “Cherokee,” as well as the rest of the album. Marshall’s voice runs rampant in several different layers and directions. It’s quite a beautiful feat and makes waiting six long years worthwhile.
The album’s namesake follows “Cherokee.” Brace yourself; it’s not bright and cheery like the name suggests. “Here it comes, here it comes / Here comes the sun,” she sings, lyrics just a tad reminiscent of The Beatles. However, nothing in this song is equivalent to the happy-go-lucky feelings in “Here Comes The Sun.” The instrumentals are dark and electronic. They match Marshall’s voice, which remains monotonous for nearly the entirety of the song. She lilts up and breaks the monotony when she sings, “This is the day / People like me have been waiting for.” This song won’t make you feel warm and fuzzy like its name implies. Instead, it’s cold, boring and quite possibly the worst track on the album.

Beautiful and bright piano opens up track three, “Ruin.” Marshall sings out all the places she’s traveled and the revelation that came to her while traveling. “All the way back home, to my town / To my town / Bitching, complaining, yet some people who ain’t got shit to eat / Bitching, moaning, so many people you know what they got.”
The piano is what makes “Ruin” such a pleasant track to listen to. It’s lively and uplifting. Maybe Marshall should have named this track “Sun” instead.

The fourth track on Sun highlights Marshall’s adventures with numerous addictions. The upbeat instruments provide the song, titled “3, 6, 9,” with the most playful tune on the album. Her chorus, complete with hand-clapping, makes light of her old addictions, “3, 6, 9, you drink wine / Monkey on your back, you feel just fine.”

“Human Being” is a song that features the widest range for Marshall’s voice. The instrumentals are not nearly as complex or electronic as some of the other tracks and, quite frankly, it’s refreshing. Instead, the focus is on Marshall’s voice. Her optimism is inspiring in lines like these: “You’ve got your own voice, so sing / you’ve got two hands so let’s go and make anything.”

The opening guitar riffs in “Silent Machine” are catchy and will suck you into the track. But, as usual, Marshall’s voice lacks depth and/or enthusiasm. The best part of the entire song is when her voice sings along with the guitar. She has a lovely soprano voice when she actually uses it.

Marshall sounds more like her old material when she teams up with Iggy Pop in track ten, “Nothin But Time.” The pair goes on to sing, in unison, “It’s up to you to be a superhero / It’s up to you to be like nobody.”

Cat Power’s Sun certainly won’t please everyone. Don’t listen to it on a Friday night expecting it to pump you up for the weekend. Instead, listen to it in an environment where you can really sit back and appreciate the lyrics. Marshall spent years perfecting the material for this album. It takes time to pick it apart and appreciate it.

Marshall deserves a lot of credit for venturing and experimenting with different sounds for Sun than what she’s used to. It’s worth the $9.99 on iTunes only if you’re an avid fan. Sample and go after the key tracks if you’re not. Oh, and buy “Sea of Love” while you’re at it.

Key tracks: “Ruin,” “3,6,9,” “Cherokee,” “Silent Machine”

(3.5 stars/5)