Seeing Things (Columbia): A-
On his solo debut, Dylan delivers a collection of simple numbers that showcases his songwriting brilliance. With the Wallflowers on hiatus, his new tunes bask in the glow of the spare Americana production of Rick Rubin, who let Dylan record at his home studio in the Hollywood Hills. Despite the dark subject matter (war, adversity, human nature’s uglier side), there’s a hopeful spring in Dylan’s step that prevents the collection from landing with too heavy a thud. With his sexy deep pipes and able finger-picking front and center, this song cycle has a poetic intimacy that recalls Springsteen’s “Nebraska,” not to mention Dylan’s dad. Download: “I Told You I Couldn’t Stop.”
