Album Review: Duncan Sheik - Legerdemain

This is the kind of album that Duncan Sheik has wanted to make for over a decade.

Let’s back up a second here.

Yes. That Duncan Sheik. The formerly floppy haired, button down shirt spokesperson that graced the cover of his self-titled album almost twenty years ago. There was always more to Sheik than his big hit “Barely Breathing,” (a song that he’s come to love to hate at this point in his career.) And I mean I’ve always been aware that there was more to him than that—but it’s something that comes as a surprise to people who did not follow his career closely since the mid 1990s.

Sheik has always treaded that line between pop star and introspective singer/songwriter—he traded the former for the latter on this second and third albums, then went head first into the pop landscape on 2002’s Daylight. He claims he nearly made his minimalistic electronic album in 2005, but backed out and re-recorded White Limousine as a politically leaning rock album.

Legerdemain serves as a proper follow up to White Limousine, though it’s not like Sheik has been sitting on his ass somewhere for the last decade—he’s dabbled in Broadway musicals (you may have heard of Spring Awakening), he released an album of songs inspired by another musical—2009’s Whisper House, and then two years later, dropped a collection of stripped down and acoustic 80s covers.

Clocking in at a preposterously indulgent 18 tracks (from the iTunes edition) Legerdemain has been a long gestating project (some of it dating back to 2012 and 2013) that walks a tightrope between introspective and atmospheric acoustic songs, similar to his sophomore album Humming, and heavily electro-infused pop music—pushing the “pop” sound he tried to achieve with Daylight into overdrive.

But first, we should maybe talk about that album cover—I mean, my pal looks like he’s ‘bout to walk right through the Stargate or some shit, you know? I do not equate this with a pop album released by the guy who made “Barely Breathing.”

But Duncan Sheik is full of surprises, I guess.

Things get off to a bit of a rough start on Legerdemain—the opening track, the electro-infused “Selling Out,” is…not the best. Like, the lyrics and the delivery of said lyrics is kind of horrible, honestly. But Sheik, a pop provocateur of sorts, knows what he’s doing—and the insipid lyrics from the refrain get stuck in your head, despite your best efforts.

The same could be said for the somewhat questionable “Birmingham,” which compares the life of a musician to the life of a criminal.

Luckily, these are only a few of the misfires on the album, which finds its footing rather quickly as the first half progresses, with stand outs including the perfect electric/acoustic balance on “Photograph” and the guitar-driven “Hey You,” which reminded me slightly of another electronic/rock project from the past—Shifting Skin, which was Ken Andrews’ first foray as a solo artist performing under the name “On.”

In fact, there’s a near perfect three song sequence featuring “Hey You,” “Warning Lights,” and “Distant Lover”—the latter two find Sheik taking his standard songwriting formula and applying the right amount of technology: primarily beeps and boops. And it works. Sheiks’ role as a performer/singer rather than a “sensitive guy with a guitar” is an effortless transition throughout the course of the record.

Sheik pulls an interesting trick as Legerdemain continues into its second half. You either become accustomed to the electronic elements of the record and therefore, they become subtler; or, the singer/songwriter side takes over and those beeps and boops are then slowly placed in the background as a more “traditional” Duncan Sheik sound takes over.

Either way, the album’s second half is where things really start to take shape, and the focus becomes less on technology and more on Sheik’s songwriting abilities as well as his voice—strong as it ever was. While some of the catchiest songs are front loaded on the album, Sheik has saved the songs with the most emotional weight for last—ending with the contemplative “Half a Room” and the somber and short ballad “So There.”

Because 2015, there are two additional songs included on the iTunes edition of the album: the epic and swirling “After All,” and the bombastic “I Wish for The Sun”—a rerecording of a song Sheik composed with songwriter David Poe a few years back. Both of these tracks are strong enough to be considered part of the album proper, rather than being relegated as bonus tracks or afterthoughts.

Ten years removed from his last true “pop” record and twenty years removed from what made him a household name, Duncan Sheik is in a place where he no longer has to worry about taking career risks—he’s not on a major label any more, and dude probably still cashes a “Barely Breathing” paycheck every week. That, plus all the success from Spring Awakening have given Sheik the freedom with his music that most artists only dream of.   

On paper, however, Legerdemain is a bit of a risk, at first, in the way it blends Sheik’s past sound with his current muse of electronic music. Despite a few stumbles, once it finds its pacing, the risk pays off for a captivating, exciting, and thoughtful listen that proves, once again, that Sheik is more than just a one hit wonder.

Legerdemain is out now.