While Amy Millan’s voice is always an unmistakable focal point of the Montreal band Stars, on The Five Ghosts she doesn’t just shine—she takes over. Radiant as ever, Millan offers perfectly balanced and articulated bite and nuance. When she sings, “After I am caught/Touch turns into fisticuffs” on the lead single “Fixed,” the echoing “you, you…” becomes a bittersweet taunt to an abusive lover. Whereas on previous Stars albums, the standout tracks are the ones where Millan and Torquil Campbell jockey back and forth with tragic he-said-she-said forlorn dialogue, The Five Ghosts is really Millan’s album to shine, with her solo numbers (like the brilliant “Changes”) being the most memorable.
This article appears in Jul 15-21, 2010.
