Michelle Shocked – Threesome

Want to put money down that Michelle Shocked disappeared off the face of the earth? She’ll take that bet and raise you three albums. Threesome is the collective title of a trio of albums Shocked is releasing almost to dare fans to just try writing her off as a relic of the pre-Nevermind era. Taken separately and as a whole, they are evidence Shocked has boundless energy to mine inspiration in the unlikeliest of places. While there’s a lot that’s not essential in this clearinghouse of songs, the curiosity factor balances the onslaught. As with Ryan Adams and Bright Eyes, an editor would have a lot to hack away with here, if just to pave the way for the jewels.

The opening of the floodgates follows her declaration of independence from the major-label system and entryway into a cottage industry of all things Shocked. In the wake of 2002’s Deep Natural, the inaugural release of her in-house label Mighty Sound, Shocked is free to genre-hop at her leisure — a knack considered erratic by her old label Mercury.

Freedom is a mighty temptress, especially for prolific artists who consider every kernel of inspiration a golden cue to stamp out a record. Shocked is a sponge of all things Americana, and her pursuit knows no border. Which explains the existence of Got No Strings, an album of reworked songs from classic Disney films. The collection poses an immediate question: Why? Don’t look for an answer from this roundup of western swing and bluegrass makeovers. They aim for a dose of cute that would even make Minnie blush.

The threadbare instrumentation is a snooze, leaving Shocked mostly bare with material that doesn’t provide much framework. For such wistful and happy songs, these are a drag. The wilting fiddle and pedal steel guitar on “Wish Upon A Star” and other hangdog torch ballads stay in gray, while even the frisky “Bare Necessities” sounds subdued. Shocked shows interest enough, but she can’t breathe new life past these songs’ screen incarnations. Best leave this one to Disney cultists tracking eBay for all things Mickey.

Mexican Standoff takes Shocked to the Tex-Mex borderland for a bang-up merging of traditional Tejano music and hardcore electric blues. She sings with sincere love for the both sides of the fence, especially crooning in Spanish on large, horn-peppered ensemble ballads such as “Lonely Planet”. Like “Que Onda Guero”, the tastiest song from Beck’s newest, “Picoesque” is a stroll through a Mexican neighborhood in Los Angeles lined with churches of every creed. Shocked jumbles her churches when suddenly the song heats up in gospel fervor, complete with choir, scorching organ, and the “sweet aroma of Jesus.” Like any city street where the storefronts crowd together because of cheap rent, this is prime culture stew, and Shocked makes the mishmash sound joyous.

The blues half could use that kind of character. “Mouth Of The Mississippi” is accompanied by the stock references to catfish and ferryboats, plus plenty of greasy guitar licks. Shocked is not a particularly distinctive blues growler, and standard tourist fare such as the twelve-bar weeper “180 Proof” doesn’t help matters.

No surprise that the crown jewel of this erratic triptych is Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, which is reminiscent of Short Sharp Shocked, her 1988 album that casually see-sawed with folk, country, pop, rockabilly and swing. Here, Shocked doesn’t miss a beat. “How You Play The Game”, with its sneered verses and shouted chorus, is insurgent folk-rock at its prime, a direct link to Bob Dylan up through Patti Smith. Gears shift quickly from there, from sludgy blues (“Used Car Lot”) to Tejano (“Evacuation Route”) to New Orleans second line (“Don’t Tell”) to jazz confessional (“Hardly Gonna Miss Him”) to snotty punk (“Hi Skool”).

Newly divorced, Shocked walks a tension wire throughout Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, seeping her own life story into the many genres she juggles. “Now I hear you come calling/In my late afternoon/Conducting your affairs/In my bedroom,” she sings on the sobering “Elaborate Sabotage”, laced with accordion and acoustic guitar.

For all the album’s twists and turns, no song is as mesmerizing as “Don’t Ask”. Tracked to a midnight groove, Shocked has you with the opening line: “did I ever tell you about the time I was changed into a rabbit? That’s right, I was. Changed into a rabbit.” From there, against a sinister background that includes a trumpet impersonating a rattlesnake, the song spins a tale about metamorphosis from a storyteller who’s all about shedding skin.