Cat Power (aka Chan Marshall) is a polished and profound re-inventor of music. From her 2008 album ‘Jukebox’, which sees Marshall take on the likes of Janis Joplin and Joni Mitchell, to her most recent 2023 Live Album, 'Cat Power Sings Dylan: The 1966 Royal Albert Hall Concert’, where she covers Bob Dylan’s biggest hits, Marshall has made a lucrative career by taking classics and making them her own.
Her new EP, ‘Redux’, is no different. However, this release of re-interpretations and renditions is also a celebration. It marks 20 years since Marshall’s biggest album, full of her own original tracks, ‘The Greatest’, was released - an album that has aged like a fine wine and defied its initial critics. However, rather refreshingly, it does not rely solely on nostalgia or rehashes of past hits.
The EP, which sees her reunite with her show-stopping touring band, Dirty Delta Blues, opens with a warm, soulful sea of love. The first track is a cover of James Brown’s ‘Try Me’. The melody is infectious, and Marshall’s execution is silky soft. There are really echoes of Karen Carpenter and Norah Jones on the chorus. She exercises her rich contralto-esque register from start to finish, with the track just effortlessly fading out.
Next up, there is a reworking of a solid track from ‘The Greatest’ album, in the form of ‘Could We’. This goes back to the point that Marshall is not relying purely on the nostalgia of her greatest album (pardon the pun) to do all the heavy lifting of this EP.
Yes, she has included a remastered version of arguably one of her best hits, but does so with such class and originality that it feels like a brand-new release. It is still recognisable; the landing of lyrics like “what a dream, in the grass / We kissed, fell in love too fast, too soon / Love full bloom” makes sure of that. However, the intro is slower, the chorus has echoes of Billie Holiday and the more contemporary Rumer, but is fuelled by a few rocky riffs, and the piano solos are more prolific and profound throughout.
‘Redux’ finishes on a massive high, with a cover of Prince’s ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’. This was a brave choice; of course, it is a track made famous by the late Sinead O’Connor. Albeit the risk pays off. It is the longest track on the EP, lasting around five and a half minutes (the rest of the tracks only last around two minutes). It must be stressed, though, that this is not a bad thing.
The whole cover is like confetti. It adds a folk spin onto one of the world’s greatest love ballads. The Dusty Springfield comparison that has followed Marshall around for the past two decades really comes to the fore. The chorus personifies the blue-eyed soul genre, with a lingering tenderness; the whole track leaves you appreciating every single line of the song.
Marshall has always been mature in tone, but this time she is skilfully refined and, in turn, has revived her own sound with a minimal yet carefully curated track list. The Moody Blues mix with pristine vocals throughout, leaving you wanting more!
‘Redux’ was released on January 23, 2026, via Domino Recording Company. It comes ahead of Marshall’s series of live shows kicking off in Houston next month, before she heads off to North America, Europe, and later the United Kingdom.
Cory Gourley
Image: ‘Redux’ Official EP Cover
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