Magic leads off with "Radio Nowhere," the Boss singing of "Sitting around a dead dial / Just a-searching for a world with some soul," lamenting the state of the modern-day music industry. But while Bruce may say that radio is dead, this album proves that rock'n'roll isn't.
After going in unexpected directions on his last two efforts, Bruce Springsteen returns to his roots on Magic, his first album with the E Street Band since 2002. Many of these songs sound as if they belong on one of his earlier projects - "Livin' In the Future" and "Long Walk Home" could have come right off Darkness on the Edge of Town. If they sound like you've heard them before, that's only proof that Bruce has returned to form. The band presents itself well, and fans will find plenty to love in Clarence Clemons' wailing sax solos and the signature dueling guitars from Nils Lofgren and Steven Van Zandt (of Sopranos fame).
At times the band is almost too strong, and Bruce's smoky vocals get lost in the mix. And there are some missteps - "Girls In Their Summer Clothes" is a particularly egregious offender about coming to terms with the loss of youth.
With Magic, Bruce avoids the overtly political tone of his past studio efforts (with the exception of anti-war anthem "Last to Die"), but his message is clear. In the title track he warns the listener: "Trust none of what you hear / And less of what you see." But wait! "Don't worry darlin' / We're livin' in the future/And none of this has happened yet." As long as artists continue to produce albums like this, we have no reason to be concerned.
