David Udell’s optimistically titled It’s Worth It is full of catchy, off-kilter pop melodies and satirical lyrics. This is the singer and multi-instrumentalist’s second solo album following 2015’s Orchids. Although he’s backed by a slew of talented musicians playing everything from saxophone to flute to clavinet, Udell is credited with electric, acoustic, nylon and slide guitars; piano; synths/keyboards; bass guitars; theremin; Stylophone; Flexatone; trumpet; percussion; and “toys.”
Udell’s vocals are average, at best -- but that’s part of this record’s DIY charm. Plus, the man knows how to create adventurous yet accessible music. (For more proof of that, listen to Elements of Surprise, the 2022 album by Udell’s techno-pop instrumental trio Delayed Tactics.)
This album peaks near the end, with a bouncy prequel to the title track, “Is It Worth It?,” followed by almost three minutes of voices on “Unexplored Expanses” and completed with the mesmerizing title track itself -- a cathartic call to action in a world going madder by the day: “Hold on now/Enduring ignorance, vulgarity and cruelty/There are enough of us to press on righteously/It’s worth it.”
So is seeking out this record.
Track Listing
1. Watching the Freak Parade
2. It’s Beginning to Look Like Rain
3. Slow Song
4. The Motion Song
5. Our River
6. Solid Ground
7. Made My Peace
8. Is It Worth It?
9. Unexplored Expanses
10. It’s Worth It
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