Formerly bearded weirdo Devendra Banhart releases another album of strange folk with What Will We Be (Reprise). Problem is, his major-label debut sounds overproduced and commercialized, with none of the organic charm of previous albums like Rejoicing in the Hands. It’s an unfocused grab bag of tracks ranging from Banhart as R&B crooner on “Baby” to Banhart as Cut Copy-inspired DJ on “16th and Valencia, Roxy Music.”
“Can’t Help but Smiling,” though, has the refreshing, invigorating feeling of waking up after a mid-day nap. It’s a lively, tropical folky song with Spanish undertones. Depressingly, the production tarnishes the song with a sheen that would not be out of place in a commercial for Levi’s or iPod, or some other corporation trying to appeal to a hip demographic. The appeal of previous Banhart albums were their lo-fi intimacy. Who wants a musically airbrushed folk singer?
This article appears in Nov 18-24, 2009.