Bare Stripped Naked

Bettie Serveert. <i>Minty Fresh</i>.

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Fronted by the elegant Carol van Dyk, this durable Dutch group has been making sad, sublime pop since its classic early-’90s debut album, Palomine. While the Betties weren’t overly raucous in the first place, Bare Stripped Naked (packaged with a live DVD) takes the unplugged route, emphasizing the inspired songwriting of van Dyk and guitarist Peter Visser, who combine limpid melodies and tart lyrics to brew a potent angst cocktail. “Hell is other people / To hell with other people,” van Dyk sighs at one point, going on to exclaim, “God only knows where I want to be / And he knows that it isn’t with you.” Later, she conjectures that a sleeping, smiling lover is dreaming of “how to get away.” Reading her lines calmly, suggesting nothing better could be expected, van Dyk delivers a quietly devastating indictment of romance guaranteed to rattle all but the most determined optimist.

 

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“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things it doesn’t like—which is most things that are true.

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