Boat Songs, MJ Lenderman’s 2022 breakout effort, opens with “Hangover Game,” a two-minute beer-in-hand barn-burner that boasts sports metaphors, wailing country-rock guitars, and an overall rockin’ vibe. Manning Fireworks, Lenderman’s ANTI- Records debut and Boat Songs followup, on the other hand, opens with the title track, a low-key folk ditty that finds the budding songwriter as stripped-down as fans have ever heard him. Ironically, it sounds much more like a hangover than “Hangover Game.”
It’s a bold move for what is effectively the first ‘hotly-anticipated’ release of Lenderman’s career, and one that establishes a specific tone for Manning Fireworks. Having won over an allegiance of dedicated Lendermen with sing-along-worthy songwriting and Crazy Horse-ish live shows (as documented on his excellent 2023 live album And the Wind [Live and Loose!]), the new collection of tunes presents a more reserved, refined Lenderman. It’s as if the post-party depression has finally knocked on his door.
With more eyes than ever resting upon his “funny face,” the Asheville artist comes through with a rootsy invitation into his creative world — and it’s an invitation you best accept, as Manning Fireworks is easily one of the most fully-realized, quotable, and irresistible indie rock releases of 2024.
As established at the top of the tracklist, Manning Fireworks finds Lenderman’s largely guitar-forward compositions supported by surprisingly lush country instrumentation. While lap steel and pedal steel have long been a staple of his sound, fiddles, upright basses, and horns have now officially been invited to the hoedown. “Rip Torn” serves as the most prominent example, being wonderfully led by Landon George’s fiddle melodies, but other cuts that might have otherwise sounded like more traditional indie rock affairs are given a subtle flare of moonshine. Take “You Don’t Know the Shape I’m In,” which grounds its guitar feedback with clarinet and a warm upright bass line, or the pedal steel and cowbell that underline lead single “Rudolph.”
Lenderman’s embrace of his twangiest tendencies comes through on the more straightforward rock tunes as well, like the dynamic “Wristwatch” or the blistering anthem “She’s Leaving You.” Even as they match the volume of the noisier tunes from his past, Lenderman keeps the tempo plotting and deliberate and the lead vocals reined-in. Gone is the punk attitude of songs like “SUV” or the strained snarls of tunes like “Tastes Just Like It Costs.” Instead, Lenderman comes across as weathered and too tired to hide his aching heart.
