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Troubled, Shaken Etc.
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Troubled, Shaken Etc.
Current price: $15.99
Barnes and Noble
Troubled, Shaken Etc.
Current price: $15.99
Size: CD
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The second full-length from the
on
is a logical extension of its
debut.
is equally ambitious, yet it's much more deeply focused as a recording than its predecessor. Vocalist/songwriter
and her London-based sextet have carefully constructed this 13 track, 53-minute set to draw the listener down into a hushed, deceptively minimal soundworld that paradoxically demands the listener's attention albeit graciously. The whispering repetitive guitars, marimbas, and piano on
create a sparkling, shimmering sonic beauty before she begins singing. Her voice is so lithe and slight that the listener, seduced by the song's atmosphere, is compelled to listen with concentration to every word. This is followed by the slightly darker, droning, yet no less gorgeous
that in some ways is reminiscent of
's attempt at atmospheric pop. But the song unfolds so much more tentatively and deliberately that when a muted trumpet enters about a minute in, it's as if the listener expected it all along, as it introduces the rest of the subtle surprises in the track. The melody in
touches on the band's fascination with the British folk of
, but it is also graced by the dark kiss of the early
. But the surprises aren't all subtle. The all-too-brief
carries within it a groove that recalls both the Motorik Krautrock of
as well as the percussive -- and progressive -- heaviness of
's
.
is its mirror image: over seven minutes in length -- making it the longest entry here -- it walks a line between droning free folk, retro-psych worship,
's more adventurous melodic moments, and the indie experimental feel of the
is a funky, spacy, psychedelic rock tune with soul-jazz breakbeats. The bottom line is
is an album: paced, sequenced, structured, and produced as such. It's utterly lovely, feminine, and subtly adventurous. The listener is given a soft, quiet, sonic bedroom and allowed to dwell in there, a mental place where time is suspended and the outside world vanishes entirely, for close to an hour. ~ Thom Jurek