Aug/090
NEW MUSIC: Radiohead – These Are My Twisted Words (2009)
The blurb:
Radiohead leak their own track in Scene style on various BitTorrent sites? Part of a yet-to-be-announced EP/LP, possibly titled Wall of Ice? To the former, quite possibly; to the latter, it seems not. Who cares though, this is a wonderful sign of things to come.
Sounds like:
Lashings of washed out guitar, buzzing bass and a fantastically crisp up-tempo groove. A slow-burning five and a half minutes of simple, confident Radiohead.
Thoughts:
There’s no sign of a drum machine or a synthesiser on this track, and who knows, that might be a relief for some, but the hallmarks are all over this record of a group who have totally mastered the electronic aesthetic and integrated into how they make music. The metamorphosis, the attention to detail in the mix, it has that precision.
This really is the best ‘band’ recording I’ve heard from Radiohead, probably ever. The production is impeccably poised: the insistent high-hat rat-a-tat never gets smothered by those layers of delayed guitar, and the result is instantly mesmerising. Admittedly, there’s a little too much vocal in there at times, but I’m really nit-picking.
Verdict:
They just keep refining and refining. You can hear the lessons learnt from all their previous records in this one, and it’s glorious.
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Jul/090
NEW MUSIC: Fever Ray – Fever Ray (2009)
The blurb:
An offshoot / solo project from Karin Dreijer Andersson of acclaimed Swedish electro duo The Knife. Andersson combines variously twisted vocals over crisp downtempo beats.
Sounds like:
The production reminds me in places of Pan Sonic’s ultra-lean Aaltopiiri, particularly in the rhythm sections, albeit liberally smothered with 80s sonic bling. Thow in a clear love for “world” instruments, and you’ve a got a bonkers combination which I’ve only ever heard on this record.
Thoughts:
This post has been in draft for far too long. The honest truth is that I’ve spent far to much time listening to and enjoying Fever Ray which has distracted me from writing it up. It’s bloody excellent. Can I stop writing and go put it back on repeat now?
This is a record full of smartly crafted, expansive, shuffling beats – replete with the hand claps, tersely cut snares and natural crashes expected of a serious modern electronic production – but the way they are delivered is quite unique. The appearance throughout of tabla, gamelan, acoustic guitar and other cross-cultural touchstones (including a particularly enjoyable pan-pipe line on Keep The Streets Empty For Me, which somehow reclaims that sound from the South American street band) give the music much more character than if it just stuck to synth sounds. That pseudo-nomadic aural reference really works with the isolated, exposed, drifting lyrical persona. As an album it has a fantastic awareness of it’s own sound palette. Oh, and the lyrics are touched with a charming, frustrated madness: “by the kitchen sink / we talk about love / we talk about dishwater tablets / and we dream about heaven”.
Verdict:
Mad, claustrophobic, personal and very well executed. Now I can go put it back on.
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Jul/091
NEW MUSIC: Soap&Skin – Lovetune For Vacuum (2009)
The blurb:
Haunting and powerful piano driven project from Anja Plaschg, the bold 19 year-old Austrian farmer’s daughter.
Sounds like:
It’s a little too simplistic, but imagine Vespertine-era Björk with a large dose of central European melancholia. Skipping beats and eclectic synths that wouldn’t sound out of place on an Autechre release, but here they’re just the support for Plaschg’s ever so delicate songcraft.
Thoughts:
Now this girl has a voice on ‘er. Expansive and ethereal, it would be far to easy to reference Björk (see, I’ve done it twice now already) or even Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir of Múm, but the wide, confident and breathy delivery is somehow more touching than either of these.
The reason, I think, is the honesty of it all. The production is clear and crisp; the piano in particular is the best I’ve heard on a “pop” record for a fair while. This is consistently intimate in a way that Vespertine isn’t (that’s thrice now) as it sounds like Plaschg is singing for herself as much as anyone else. It gives me a similar feeling of claustrophbia-tinged romance as when I listen to Bon Iver’s For Emma, Forever Ago.
So what is it that really makes this record stand out from the crowd? The beats are modern and competent enough, as are the moody tunes themselves. However the magic here is in the voice which has so much promise in it. This is the first record from Soap&Skin, and I’m really looking forward to more.
Verdict:
Grows and grows. If you have a heart, you’ll fall for this one.
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