hell.o
apologies that things have been somewhat quiet recently.
this was due to the ireallylovemusic clan heading off into the country to enjoy a rather delightful few days at the end of the road festival.
of course a write up will be sorted out. however, i decided to drop a few words re some albums that have impressed in recent times.
charlotte gainsbourg – 5.55
yes she’s an actress.
yes she is beautiful.
yes she is the daughter of someone who made a lot of records and was rather famous.
yes she has made this album in liason with lots of other famous people – jarvis cocker, air, divine comedy.
and yes, she has made one of my current favourite albums.
the music is as you would expect from air, i think they call it dream pop in certain quarters of the world. synths, pianos, and guitars evoke ambient soundscapes while delicate atmospheric textures are wrapped around charlottes breathy sultry vocals to stunning effect. in the wrong mood the chilled out vibe will pass over the casual listener, however, after a few listens the icy cold robotic vocal of af607105 will begin to creep up on you to the point of being a playlist stalker, the small fact that the lyrics seem to be about the final few minutes of a plane crash just drives the eerie atmosphere further. thankfully, the operation seems to lighten the mood, slightly. that is if you aren’t squeamish about plastic surgery.
oh yes, this is an album that on the surface is all light and air-y and very sublime, but scratch the thin veneer of gorgeous sonic production, and it’s a dark world that charlotte inhabits.
very special indeed.
more detail : here
kathryn williams – leave to remains
folk music ? ireallylovemusic ?
will wonders never cease ! thing is, ever since kathryn williams collaborated with my favourite laptop cruncher pedro a few years ago, i have always wanted to hear more of her own music. her vocals are exquisite, and in these more natural surroundings of acoustic instruments her obvious talent shines though. the songs are simply arranged with lots of plucked acoustic guitar, echoed piano notes, and gentle treatments, but when the vocals are layered like on the opening blue onto you i can’t tell you just how beautiful and spine tingling the results are. for the next 34 minutes there are several of these types of tricks played on the listener. for alongside the traditional folk styled production, kathryn and her crew have dropped in some very interesting touches, the looped stereo phased vocals on sandy l, and the glockenspiel on opened being of particular note.
however, all this pales into insignificance when the fantastic piano minimalism of glass bottom boat is dragged into the modern world of shock value when kathryn declares, ‘we’ve been fucking all afternoon’, a lyric that jolts the listener out of their slumber. recent single hollow sticks out with its appearance with proper band, involving brushed drums, and a string section. how this hasn’t been hammered to within an inch of its life on radio 2 is beyond me.
pure late night perfection.
more detail : here
stay tuned.
mark e