Lost in Space

Why should we care about the midlife crises of hypersensitive women? Because Aimee Mann makes us care. Her fourth album draws us in with alluring guitar lines, lilting melodies, and the dramatic sweep of a subtly employed 16-piece orchestra, but such pleasantries are merely a vehicle for Mann’s tales of miscommunication, disappointment, and unhappiness. “What some take for magic at first is just sleight of hand,” she sings on the airy, forlorn “Invisible Ink.” Such sentiments typify Lost in Space, in which song after song wrestles with life at the moment just after the bottom falls out. The ghost of George Harrison reverberates through the soaring guitar licks of “Humpty Dumpty,” a loping lament about being broken beyond repair. “This Is How It Goes” is, similarly, an ode to quiet resignation, this time built on delicate acoustic guitar work, wispy organ tones, and Mann’s breathy voice. It’s hard to find much hope buried in the grooves here, but that only seems to make Mann’s downhearted pop gem all the more captivating.