Downtown

Hailing from Boston, home of the Magnetic Fields, Don Lennon crafts one of the funniest serious albums with Downtown. In a voice that echoes the Magnetic Fields’ brilliant Stephin Merritt, and with eclectic pop music in the vein of Robyn Hitchcock and John Cale’s jauntier solo work, Lennon sets his sights on pop culture icons, and he’s unmerciful. Count them — two songs making fun of Dave Matthews should have listeners laughing out loud. Lennon sings as Dave Matthews on the upbeat David Byrne-esque “Matthews Comes Alive.” Then, on “Really Dave Matthews,” Lennon remembers himself in his college dorm on a coed’s bed (with, what else — a Dave Matthews poster over it), and when “she accidentally touched my hand, I was so happy that I lied and said I liked the Dave Matthews Band.” Lennon proceeds to tackle Lenny Kravitz, the gay nightlife scene, foreign exchange students, and John Cale, and then finally pays homage to the Mekons with the psychedelic country tune “Mekons Come to Town.” The greatest thing about the humor on Downtown is that Don Lennon is so sincere about being hilarious. With such a sublime balance between the melancholy and the ridiculous, these songs should be in a Wes Anderson film. – Charles Spano