Bruce Springsteen & The E Street band’s video for the lead single from the forthcoming Magic has now been released, and it attempts to define the band as a gracefully aged group remembering how times once were. Quite fond of the spirit and sound of Springsteen’s last effort, my initial reaction to “Radio Nowhere” comes as something far different than I had hoped for. Here is a recount of just how the video stacks up:

00:05 The sound is a lot gritter than I expected it to be – something “The Boss” should have released in the ’90s.

00:20 He looks good, but Lord please don’t let Eddie Vedder sound like this when he’s 57.

01:26 There’s no way I can ever take Max Weinberg seriously…

01:57 Sweet, haven’t heard a dated un-ironic 80’s saxophone jam since the last time I heard Bruce Springsteen.

02:18 “I was driving through the misty rain, searchin’ for a mystery train”…? Oh yeah…why don’t I just go make some things out of clay or eat some hay…I just may…

Verdict? While “Every wrinkle and line on his face adds to his center-stage authority” I just can’t get behind the song…it’s a tad dull, and suprisingly non-preachy – all things considered. For a while there I was beginning to think that Springsteen was becoming the musical equivalent of Ol’ Rudy Giuliani (though he never tried to win a Presidential election based on an “I was totally there, remember?” platform). “Radio Nowhere” is simply about Bruce wanting to rock, it’s just a shame that he didn’t.

(Official) (MySpace) (Wikipedia)