The drumbeat is growing stronger: Vizquel in ‘08, Vizquel in ‘08. The Chron reports this morning that some of his teammates want him back, and the man himself wants to return.
Questions to consider: Do the flashy plays he makes on defense mask a shrinking range? Is his dreadful offensive year (.243 / .303 / .300) a permanent decline, or can he muster an acceptable career-average year at the age of 41? If he could magically guarantee just a career-average season (.274 / .340 / .357),would you want him back? If so, how much should he earn? If another team competes for his services, should the Giants throw in a second-year option to sweeten the deal? If not Omar at short next year, who?
Discuss.
***
SMALL PRINT UPDATE: Now listening to The New Pornographers’ Challengers. In most of its best work — “Letter to an Occupant,” “The Laws Have Changed,” “It’s Only Divine Right,” “Use It,” “Sing Me Spanish Techno” — the band likes to romp, slash and burn. The drums are mixed front and center, the beat propulsive, the vocals loud and insistent, their shape and punctuation more important than the conscious meaning of their unmoored imagery.
Challengers is different. As this perceptive guy pointed out to me (and please, check out his interview with Joe Henry) someone pulled in the reins on the drums, a huge difference in the album’s presentation. It’s not just that there are softer songs — Neko Case’s work on the lovely title track is perhaps my favorite — but that even the fast ones feel held out for inspection instead of thrust into your ears.
I like it, but better than the three previous? It’s too different to say yet. One thing’s for sure: the older I get, the more I like Dan Bejar’s contributions to the band. Place “Myriad Harbor” with The Pogues’ “Fairytale of New York” and Lou Reed’s “Halloween Parade” (and much of the rest of his New York album) among the classic rock paeans to the Big Apple.
