Parvati Magazine December 2014/January 2015: Consequence/Beginnings | Page 36

MUSIC

LEONARD COHEN
Popular Problems

I

grew up playing in Montreal streets that echoed with the creative voices of great Canadian artists such as Mordecai Richler and Leonard Cohen. Such memories have left me with
a soft spot for Leonard Cohen’s music, whose smoky voice, simple melodies and profound
lyrics have marked the chapters of my life.
Yet saying that his most recent album “Popular Problems” is among his best ever is an unbiased opinion. There is good reason that Leonard Cohen’s 13th studio album hit number
one in 29 countries around the globe this year shortly after it was released on September 22,
2014, two days after his 80th birthday.

True to the artistic career that he has painted in words and sound since his musical debut in 1967, “Popular Problems” displays a mastery of poetry, imagery and melodies as