Releasing under his given name for the first time, Bill Callahan starts off the rush for Woke on a Whaleheart with inaugural single “Diamond Dancer.” The question that's bound to crop up with “Diamond Dancer” -- and the entire full-length, for that matter -- is why, at this juncture in his life, Callahan has decided to abandon the Smog moniker that he has used for almost two decades. He may not have built up any pop-culture name recognition, but for those of us who still consider Knock Knock (1999), Red Apples Fall (1997), and Dongs of Sevotion (2000) to be among the best records of the last ten years, the choice to start over seems a bit odd.

A single that displays no serious aberration from the Smog format compounds this feeling. Sure, Callahan has Neil Michael Haggerty along to produce the track which makes it feel a bit grander than anything off A River Ain't Too Much To Love (2005), but there's nothing here that’s going to surprise anybody who has heard Callahan’s music before. Some background singers, some strings and heavy drums, some dour incantations: it’s a decent single, but there’s no feeling of a great leap forward. Hell, even the inside cover art is a spoof on that freaked out cat from the Knock Knock cover. It’s a good beginning, but here’s to hoping that Callahan’s not gone soft on us.

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