Review: MJ Lenderman’s “Manning Fireworks” is magical

“It falls apart/we all got work to do”

Taken from the album cover Cover by Matthew Reed and Andrew James

MJ Lenderman isn’t someone I had ever heard of.

His band, “Wednesday” had been mentioned to me by a friend as someone to check out, but I did so like I normally would, check them out and enjoy them for what they are: new and creative. But then I moved on, searching for the next big, new thing.

With MJ Lenderman’s “Manning Fireworks”, I feel like we have the “next big, new thing”. Which, of course, turns out to be someone who does not want to be “the next big thing”. I still haven’t been able to move on and search for the “next big thing”, simply because there seems to be some depth and substance here that warrants listen after listen.

This is, arguably, the best album of the year.

It’s simply too good and complete of a work of art to be ignored. While initially, the lyrical content comes off as playful and fun, it doesn’t take much time to realize there’s more to what is being said than just to “goof off”. Not that the world couldn’t use some goofing off once in a while.) There is some lyrical “meat on the bone”.

From the opening track title track, the opening lines jump out. “Birds against a heavy wind/ that wins in the end”, the lyrical quality and philosophical…