An Extraordinary Ordinary Life EP Review
“An Extraordinary Ordinary Life,” John Batdorf. EP Review
John Batdorf, of ’70s folk-rock groups Batdorf & Rodney and Silver, once again displays his considerable abilities as a storyteller on “An Extraordinary Ordinary Life.” Hot on the heels of last year’s full-length, “Last Summer,” “An Extraordinary Ordinary Life” features six upbeat songs co-written with longtime collaborator Michael McLean.
Where “Last Summer” found Batdorf in a contemplative mood, especially considering the pandemic the album was birthed into, this new EP often takes a lighter approach. The opening track, “I Wanna Know,” is a pure, wide-eyed love song, as is the yearning rocker “She’s So Lonely.”
As mentioned, Batdorf is at his best when he has a story to tell. “Tone Deaf and Two Left Feet” is a charming country-ish ditty about a musical duo — a man who has no rhythm and a woman who has no melody — filling out each other’s weaknesses. And perhaps the strongest song here, “Why Don’t You Move Home” zooms in on a couple trying to reconcile when “finding the perfect words isn’t so easy.”
Brian McElhiney
