Corook

• Best of Corook (So Far) [Atlantic, 2022] A-
• Serious Person (Part 1) [Atlantic EP, 2023] A

Consumer Guide Reviews:

Best of Corook (So Far) [Atlantic, 2022]
Relative to Serious Person, this older music comprises a relatively conventional lineup of collegiate-to-post-collegiate queer love songs. But much more than the preponderance of such material, it's simultaneously deep and cute. Vocally it milks the breathy sweetness of Corook's petite soprano; instrumentally, it foregrounds modestly playful keyboards. Issues addressed include not telling mom, "if they don't like you they're fucking stupid," the futility of BDSM, who'll get the dog, and the cheesiness of Edgar Allen Poe's "Annabelle Lee." A-

Serious Person (Part 1) [Atlantic EP, 2023]
No kid--28 years old, it says here. No amateur either--like secret sharer Adrianne Lenker, who registered simplistic until finally you realized how not just smart but sophisticated she was, Corook has put in time at Berklee, regarding which she has admittedly averred "I don't use half that shit/Fuck the circle of fifths." But if you shy away from this EP on account of it sounds childish, then you miss the point, as many have and will. Just make sure it"s not because you can't comprehend why the "Tiny Little Titties" outro "I don't feel like a man, I don't feel like a woman/I've tried to describe myself, it turns out that I couldn't" rides a melody so sweet and simple it's hard to comprehend that it buoys up so much existential weight. One way or another, that's the way it is with all eight songs on this 18-minute collection. Almost unbelievably until you take a moment to ponder how many supposed normals are bent out of shape by the non-binary perplex, there've been reviewers who've loathed this record. Get used to it, which shouldn't take long, and you'll find yourself not just charmed but transfixed by its triumphant sweetness, candor, humor, and musicality. A