With dim-light instrumentation and the shadowing vocals of longtime collaborator Sharon Robinson, Cohen returns, the undisputed landlord of those dark, damaged places. From the impossible longing of "In My Secret Life" to the sad-bastard boozings of "That Don't Make It Junk,"
Ten New Songs manages to sustain loss's fragile beauty like never before and might just be the Cohen's most exquisite ode yet to the midnight hour.
STEVEN CHEAN
(October 9, 2001)
After almost a decade in exile, Cohen literally came down a mountain to cut his first album since 1992's Democracy. The tempos, melodies and arrangements don't differ much from song to song, but Cohen's calm, elegant precision has always been a constant virtue. "A Thousand Kisses Deep," an ode to beautiful losers, is one of the best things he's ever written.
