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Four years ago, it was guitarist and vocalist Corin Tucker's maternal pull that bore most of the blame for Sleater-Kinney's disbanding. Fans hoping for her repentance in the form of a riotous revival will be somewhat disappointed that she's opted to describe her new solo project as "more of a middle-aged-mom record." She's got her story only half correct, though. Yes, 1,000 Years does brim with what might characterize a middle-aged-mom sound: folk and piano balladry, orchestral flourishes, and mature softness. But these elements, for better and worse, are in constant struggle with her iconic punk-rock roots. "Pulling Pieces" noodles gently before launching into classically heavy SK-era riffs beneath Tucker's trademark wail and then dips sheepishly back into mediocre amenability. "I'm just a shadow of what I used to be," she screams during the brief foray to the top of her lungs. 1,000 Years — the record Sleater-Kinney might have made at the very beginning if they'd been ambivalent about whether to turn up the volume and the attitude — is a meditation on age, timelessness, and nostalgia that could elicit a glass-half-full/half-empty decision from fans.
CORIN TUCKER BAND + HUNGRY GHOST + DARREN HANLON | Paradise Rock Club, 967 Comm Ave, Boston | October 25 at 8 pm | $20 | 800.745.3000 or ticketmaster.com