Made seven years after his previous solo album, Walking on Locusts, 2003's HoboSapiens is arguably stronger for being so many years in the writing. Always a sharp-witted, intellectually curious composer, John Cale comes across as a man anxiously getting down to matters. The list of musicians is impressive, including Cale's daughter Eden, Tom Waits' key guitarist Joe Gore, Andy Green, and a list of folks in charge of sampling. Brian Eno provides the drum loop to "Bicycle." Despite all the folks involved, however, this still comes across as a John Cale solo album. His vocals and vision dominate the pieces, and his modest but always-enticing way with a melody come through on the relatively sedate "Reading My Mind" and "Things," for starters. Cale's flat Welsh delivery adds a sense of unease to everything he sings, and tracks like "Look Horizon," "Magritte," "Twilight Zone," and "Over Her Head" feel like a soundtrack to the end of the world, with the orchestration creating a claustrophobic intensity.