Labyrinth. Heather Woods Broderick

On her latest, fourth, solo album Heather Woods Broderick presents intimate music. Music that is inline with many bands of the last decade. Dreamy, hovering singing and indirect. On the other hand she is not afraid to be present as well. Instruments and effects are prominently mixed and not as it were the wallpaper behind the singer. Listen to 'I Want To Go' and you will get the picture. Broderick has totally her own take on dreampop.

In this mix she is not afraid to incorporate electronic rhythms that are the main part of a song. This makes her music modern in sound without losing herself in modernity. She is very much a singer-songwriter, just do not expect an acoustic guitar playing intricate patterns over and over. Just listen to how subtle single 'Admiration' plays out over the slow beats and rhythmic sounds. Just beats and a synth accompany the singing until circa half way other instruments come in setting the song on fire as it were.

You will find this approach more often on Labyrinth, making it what this album is. An amalgam of modern sounds and traditional songwriting. Over the music Broderick sings with a dreamy voice, better: voices, as she at times is all over the place vocally, but always dreamy.

Heather Woods Broderick is from Maine but lives in LA, with many years in Oregon in between, where she was a feature in the local music scene, collaborating on different albums and playing in touring bands, e.g. of Sharon van Etten. Around these projects she releases her own music with Labyrinth as the latest expression.

In a song like 'Tiny Receptors' she is almost as esoteric sounding as Josephine Foster. The song shows what Heather Woods Broderick sounds like in her living room, all alone with her guitar, although in an interlude, solo would not describe it in a correct way, weird sounds are allowed in. The singing stops abruptedly, adding to the mysterious atmosphere of the song.

Electronic beats take over, announcing the next song. 'Blood Run Through Me'. If there is a formula behind Broderick's music, it is that from tranquil she always moves to a more eclectic part of her songs. Of course, this is relative with the dreamy kind of music that fills Labyrinth. On top of the music her dreamy voice, with enough "bathroom" on it, is always on top of the music. Heather Woods Broderick is central on her album, as she's allowed to be.

Admittedly, when listening to the whole album by the time I reach 'Blood Run Through Me' I have heard enough. When I play the song stand alone, it is as impressive as most of the other songs are. So despite Labyrinth being near the edge of my musical tastes, the album lands really well. A nice discovery it is.

Wout de Natris

You can listen to and order Labyrinth here:

https://heatherwoodsbroderick.bandcamp.com/album/labyrinth

can't hate myself into a different shape. Brimheim

Het debuutalbum van de Deense muzikante Brimheim sneeuwde helemaal aan het begin van 2022 helaas wat onder, maar het is een interessant album dat binnen de indierock en indiepop met de besten mee kan.

Ook in 2022 verschenen weer stapels albums van jonge vrouwelijke singer-songwriters met een voorliefde voor wat melancholische indiepop en indierock. Verzadiging ligt inmiddels stevig op de loer, maar het zou zonde zijn als dit ten koste zou gaan van de muziek van de Deense muzikante Brimheim. Het debuut van de muzikante uit Kopenhagen is inmiddels al meer dan een jaar oud, maar can't hate myself into a different shape is een album dat alsnog alle aandacht verdient. Het alter ego van Helena Heinesen Rebensdorff heeft een persoonlijk en donker album gemaakt, maar haar songs kunnen verrassend toegankelijk klinken en op hetzelfde moment de fantasie stevig prikkelen. Bijzonder album.

In de onderste regionen van een wat obscuur jaarlijstje kwam ik can't hate myself into a different shape (geen hoofdletters) van Brimheim tegen. Het is een album dat verscheen in de eerste maand van 2022 en het is een album dat volgens mij compleet is ondergesneeuwd. Ik had zelf in ieder geval nog nooit van Brimheim gehoord, maar can't hate myself into a different shape is absoluut een album dat aansluit bij mijn muzieksmaak.

Achter de naam Brimheim gaat Helena Heinesen Rebensdorff schuil. De Deense muzikante werd geboren op de Faeröer eilanden, maar woont tegenwoordig in Kopenhagen. Met can't hate myself into a different shape heeft Helena Heinesen Rebensdorff een zeer persoonlijk album afgeleverd. Het is een album waarop psychische problemen centraal staan, waardoor het debuutalbum van Brimheim een donker gekleurd album is.

Brimheim is actief in een genre waarin het de afgelopen jaren dringen was en waarin het zo langzamerhand echt overvol is, maar met can't hate myself into a different shape heeft de Deense muzikante een bovengemiddeld goed album gemaakt. Brimheim maakt op haar debuutalbum in meerdere opzichten indruk.

Om te beginnen vind ik de zang op het album erg mooi. Helena Heinesen Rebensdorff zingt vooral fluisterzacht, maar brengt desondanks flink wat variatie aan in haar zang. Zeker in de wat onderkoelde passages zit de zang op can't hate myself into a different shape dicht tegen die van Phoebe Bridgers aan, maar Helena Heinesen Rebensdorff kan ook een stuk krachtiger en expressiever zingen en heeft dan een duidelijk eigen geluid.

De mooie stem van de Deense muzikante is een van de sterkste wapens van Brimheim, maar er is zoals gezegd meer. Ook in muzikaal opzicht is can't hate myself into a different shape een interessant album. De muziek van Brimheim heeft het ruimtelijke en donkere wat zoveel Scandinavische albums kenmerkt, maar het debuutalbum van de muzikante uit Kopenhagen is ook een avontuurlijk en veelzijdig album.

De muziek van Brimheim is vaak relatief sober en atmosferisch, maar een aantal tracks op het album is veel voller ingekleurd. De song van Brimheim bestrijken hierdoor het hele spectrum van Scandinavische ijsprinsessen muziek tot de uitbundigere indiepop en indierock zoals die de laatste jaren vooral in de Verenigde Staten veel wordt gemaakt.

In vocaal en muzikaal opzicht kan Brimheim in deze genres met de besten mee, maar ook als songwriter maakt de Deense muzikante makkelijk indruk. Op can't hate myself into a different shape staan zoals gezegd een aantal zeer persoonlijke songs, maar het zijn ook songs die lekker in het gehoor liggende melodieën en refreinen en combineren met avontuurlijke passages, waardoor can't hate myself into a different shape niet alleen het oor streelt, maar ook de fantasie prikkelt.

Er is het afgelopen jaar maar weinig geschreven over het debuutalbum van Brimheim, want alleen de Britse muziekwebsite The Line of Best Fit noemde het album in januari een van de beste Scandinavische albums van het jaar. Het is een voorspelling die wat mij betreft is uitgekomen, want ik schaar het debuutalbum van Brimheim inmiddels onder de allerbeste album van 2022, zeker in het genre waarin de Deense muzikante opereert.

Erwin Zijleman

Je kunt can't hate myself into a different shape hier bestellen en luisteren:

https://brimheim.bandcamp.com/album/can-t-hate-myself-into-a-different-shape

Rat Saw God. Wednesday

Wednesday is one of the strangest band names I know. Rat Saw God nonetheless is an album that on the one hand underscores the band's name and on the other simply does not stop amazing. Let's start with the comment that album and band are very present at times and far beyond comfortable.

Wednesday's first appearance on this blog was with a review of 'Twin Plagues' by Erwin Zijleman in 2021. In the review he pointed to the progress the band had made but also implicitly admitted, in hindsight, to have under-estimated the band's debut album, 'I Was Trying To Describe You To Someone'. I picked up 'Twin Plagues' up because of the review but have to admit not to have played the album recently.

This is very different with Rat Saw God. The album is spinning in high rotation the past weeks. But where to start? With a warning to sensitive ears? That is a good one, I suppose. Despite the fact that Rat Saw God is a varied album with a good many songs on it, I doubt that many unsuspecting people will get through the minutes of screaming in which 'Bull Believer' ends. I also doubt whether it's possible for singer Karly Hartzman to sing the song live everyday and come home with a voice in one piece. Dr. Janov's therapy may even deem the screams here too much of a good thing. No doubt Hartzman needed to get something of her chest and I can only hope for her that it worked.

The rest of the album is far more comfortable alternative rock. The singing is put through an effect giving Karly Hartzman's voice a gravely quality as if the microphone is sort of broken. It gives the whole album a gravelly tone. Musically the album manoeuvres itself somewhere between alternative rock, indie and folk/country. Don't be surprised when a pedal steel turns up, played by Xandy Chelmis, replacing the huge sound of guitarist Jake Lenderman. Wednesday moves close to a band like Big Thief here but just as easily moves towards big chords of powerpop from the late 70s, where the pedal steel moves through like a fish in water.

Promo photo: Zachary Chick

Rat Saw God surprises in this sense as it is far more varied than the first two songs promise. The band shows several sides to itself and gets away with every single one. The album also shows the progress Wednesday has made in the past years. No issues with moving forward and growing along the way for this band. This includes a nice observation like "a daughter of God has a little bad luck sometimes".

Wednesday does fit in what can slowly be called a movement. Female led alternative rockbands, not afraid of experimenting a little. Big Thief, The Beths, Courtney Barnett, Jen Cloher, Vera Ellen, many can be found on this blog and not for nothing. They are all good, draw the right kind of attention to themselves with great music and slowly but surely start leading the rock pack.  Wednesday is no exception in this list.

With Rat Saw God Wednesday makes a huge step towards more fame. Those with more sensitive ears, will just have to skip song #2, more precisely after circa five minutes, like they will skip Blur's, and enjoy all the rest offered on this album. There remains more than enough for that to happen.

Wout de Natris

You can listen to and order Rat Saw God here:

https://wednesdayband.bandcamp.com/album/rat-saw-god

Carvings. Juni Habel

Singer-songwriter Juni Habel bracht begin 2023 het indrukwekkende en werkelijk wonderschone Carvings uit, dat betovert met mooie klanken en imponeert met de geweldige stem van de Noorse muzikante.

Het debuut van Juni Habel heb ik ruim twee jaar geleden gemist, maar met haar tweede album maakt de Noorse singer-songwriter diepe indruk. Dat doet Juni Habel vooral met haar mooie en bijzondere stem, maar ook de klanken op haar tweede album zijn prachtig. Carvings bevat invloeden uit de Britse folk en de muziek van de Scandinavische ijsprinsessen, maar Juni Habel heeft ook een duidelijk eigen geluid. Het is een geluid dat zoals gezegd direct betovert, maar Carvings is ook een album dat de tijd moet krijgen om te groeien en doet dit vervolgens tot indrukwekkende hoogten. Het album is een grote grote verrassing.

All Ears, het debuutalbum van de Noorse singer-songwriter Juni Habel, viel aan het eind van 2020, mede door de corona lockdowns, helaas wat tussen wal en schip. Het eerherstel komt met het deze week verschenen Carvings, want wat is dit een prachtig album. De Noorse muzikante heeft op haar tweede album maar een paar noten nodig om een onuitwisbare indruk te maken. Dat is niet zozeer de verdienste van de wat unheimische klanken of het akoestische gitaarspel waarmee het album opent, want het kippenvel wordt vooral veroorzaakt door de betoverend mooie stem van Juni Habel.

Dat betekent overigens niet dat Carvings niet mooi of bijzonder is ingekleurd, want dat is het album zeker. Het grotendeels akoestische geluid op Carvings is bijzonder sfeervol en past prachtig in het huidige seizoen, al zou een flink pak sneeuw en een dikke laag ijs niet misstaan bij de fraaie klanken op het album. Subtiel akoestisch gitaarspel vormt de basis van de muziek op Carvings, maar door subtiele accenten van strijkers, piano en wat minder goed thuis te brengen instrumenten en hier en daar bijzondere achtergrondgeluiden, wordt de muziek van Juni Habel voorzien van een bijzondere onderhuidse spanning.

Die spanning wordt versterkt door de indringende zang van de Noorse muzikante, die af en toe in meerdere lagen uit de speakers komt in mooie en trefzekere koortjes. Het is een stem die, in ieder geval bij mij, stevig binnenkomt en die bij herhaalde beluistering van het tweede album van Juni Habel alleen maar mooier en indrukwekkender wordt. Juni Habel beschikt over een stem die is gemaakt voor pastorale folky songs, maar ze klinkt toch anders dan de roemruchte Britse folkies. Carvings is onmiskenbaar een album uit het hoge Noorden, al is Juni Habel ook zeker geen typische Scandinavische ijsprinses.

Het tweede album van de Noorse muzikante, die samen met haar oma in een oud schoolgebouw op het Noorse platteland woont, doet me af en toe wel wat denken aan het briljante Little Black Numbers van de Britse folky Kathryn Williams, maar Carvings heeft ook een duidelijk eigen geluid. Het tweede album van Juni Habel bevat slechts acht songs, maar bevat desondanks bijna veertig minuten muziek. Zeker in de wat langere tracks op het album neemt Juni Habel de tijd om de spanning op te bouwen of om eindeloos af te dwalen, maar Carvings is desondanks een album dat de aandacht moeiteloos vast houdt, wat ook haast niet anders kan met zang als die van Juni Habel.

Carvings is in vocaal opzicht een van de meest indrukwekkende albums die ik de laatste tijd heb gehoord, maar ook in muzikaal opzicht maakt het album steeds meer indruk, zeker als je de tijd neemt om te verdwalen in de bijzondere songs van de Noorse muzikante. Ook ik heb het debuutalbum van Juni Habel eind 2020 niet opgemerkt, maar Carvings wist me zoals gezegd al na een paar noten te betoveren en is hierna begonnen aan een indrukwekkend groeiproces.

De muziek van Juni Habel is absoluut muziek waarvoor je in de stemming moet zijn, maar als je er voor in de stemming bent is Carvings bijna veertig minuten lang van een bijna onwerkelijke schoonheid en intensiteit. Wat mij betreft, is Carvings van Juni Habel een van de hoogtepunten van het jaar tot dusverre.

Erwin Zijleman

Je kunt Carvings hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://junihabel.bandcamp.com/album/carvings

2023 Week 15, 10 singles

The weeks fly by. The sun is out, pollen fly on the breeze making eyes water and noses run. The music business goes on no matter what. This week we have some nice, brooding, dark songs, some unrelentless loudness and end with the smallest of them all, a traditional folk song. Rock on where you can and enjoy the silent, intricate moments!

My Way Of Thinking. Beebe Gallini

Beebe Gallini returns to the blog with a raucous rock and roll track in the best 'You Really Got Me' and 'All Day And All Of The Night' tradition. The spirit of 60s garage rock and the original punk scene is very much alive in 2023. Playing for the fun of it and making it sound as good as you can. This attitude and approach to the song oozes out of my speakers. The fun extends to the video as well, where the band members keep swapping roles with obvious fun. My Way Of Thinking is a song written by Donna Weiss and recorded by a band called Randy and The Radiants in 1965. Is it on my 'Nuggets' box? If not, that would seem a serious omission. Beebe Gallini takes the bull by the horns and literally drags the track from the obscurity where it was hiding. Anyone looking for three chords and the truth, can stop looking. It's staring you straight in the face here.

Your Mind Is Not Your Friend (feat. Phoebe Bridgers). The National

Yes, I skipped 'Eucalyptus' that stood in line for today. There's a more recent single and it's beautiful. Your Mind Is Not Your Friend is a dark, brooding song full of compassion. Matt Berninger sings in his slow way, accompanied by one of the indie darling singers of the day, who sings harmonies, not a duet. She adds another layer to a song that is already so fully layered. Music is everywhere I am able to pay attention to at the same time. Listening to this song is musical multitasking! So much is going on that it is impossible to keep up with all the small and bigger parts of the arrangement. It makes Your Mind Is Not Your Friend a rich listening experience. Very much like Berninger's solo record, which may prove to become my way into The National. Two of the recent singles all go down well. 'First Two Pages Of Frankenstein' is slated for 28 April. It is one to watch out for.

Honey I Do. Josh Ritter

It appears Josh Ritter is a bit tired of his former self. Too bad, in my case, as I think he never made a better song then 'Man Burning At Both Ends', from 200-what, 4? (Sorry, Mr. Ritter.) Soon he is to release a new album and single Honey I Do precedes it. It is a song that does not sparkle in any way, like The National's dark and brooding song does. Honey I Do's atmosphere is not in line with its title. It is downcast and muddied over. And yet, the song obviously has something going for it. Because it is an almost happy song, as close as Ritter wants to get to a happy song. Because of the fine details that he worked into the arrangement. Also here the comparison to 'Your Mind Is Not Your Friend' works. Not that rich but certainly rich. As if little flowers are allowed to come out of the ground before being cut off immediately to be placed into an unseen vase. You can only smell the flowers as it were. The song may be be called Honey I Do, the message is not so nice: "No one's ever going to love you, again". Whoever the honey is, he/she will have to deal with it.

Froide Et Méchante. Caprice

Me and French? It never really got off the ground. Even when I tried hard, somehow it just did not stick. Mostly words remain from my efforts. Not enough to understand lyrics, let alone speak it beyond ordering something and hoping not to get an answer. Recently in my inbox a single from France reached me and I like it. Froide Et Méchante (cold and mean) is a modern pop song and chanson in one. Caprice is a new name for me but she has released several singles in the past few years. Froide Et Méchante has a mysteriousness in it, created by the electronics accompanying Caprice. The mood explodes in a rap part where she appears to let it all come out. The modern pop feel works against the more traditional way Claire Gibeaud sings. Fans of Sophie Hunger, Belgian singer Lizzy and Dutch Pitou should gives this singer/band? a chance.

Divinity. High Priest

Sometimes just trying something out works like a storm. As that is what Divinity is. High Priest decided to try out one more song and came up with a high roller and rocker of a song, based on an iPhone recording by guitarist Josh Regan. Divinity starts with a warped guitar riff before the band goes off full force. In the best standard set by Deep Purple and all that followed after, riffs and fast, loud chord changes jump up and down in my room. I am not a metal fan but when it comes in this mix with classic hard rock, I come a long way and Divinity is definitely up my alley. Two singles in a row on WoNoBlog for Chicago band Hip Priest. 'Invocation' is scheduled for late June.

Cocaine Footprints. These Beasts

Yes, things can get even louder on this blog. The blood from the bass players throat is on the inside of my desktop's screen. Grunted screams all over the place. Usually, I'm turned off immediately. This grunting only takes place in the second part of the near 8 minutes long video single. Dark is a word that passed by several times today already and it befits Cocaine Footprints. These Beasts, also from Chicago, making the Windy City feature prominently on this blog today, is a trio in the classic rock trio formation.  The drummer is pounding away in a truly impressive manner. A huge bass drum that comes through the whole of the way in a super prominent way, dry skins and cymbals are all over the song. The guitar is hugely in overdrive, playing mostly power chords. It is the bass that surprises me. Looking at the video the instrument in played in such a slow way, while the sound is huge as well. I doubt whether I will be able to undergo a whole album, 'Cares, Wills, Wants' out on 21 April, this single is sure impressive.

Inside Outside. This Is The Kit

No, it does not get any louder still. This Is The Kit (in Dutch a nickname for the police when I was young) Inside Outside is a nice indie folkish rock song. Based on a somewhat unusual rhythm, the song slowly but surely plays itself out. This Is The Kit is Kate Stables' brainchild. Together with her band mates Rozi Plain (bass/voice), Neil Smith (guitar) and Jamie Whitby-Coles (drums) she presents new work on route to album 'Careful of Your Keepers', planned on 9 June. Inside Outside has a dark layer over it. It is in the way Kate Stables sings, that some light and optimism is provided by the song. The vocals become more layered the longer the singles last, just like more and more guitar parts are added. Whitby-Coles keeps that rhythm going giving Inside Outside a playful appearance as well. There are several links to music coming out of Australia and New Zealand in recent years, where this song easily stands its ground. I'm not certain, but I suppose the Rozi Plain that was on this blog recently with her latest album, is the same woman. A nice introduction this song is to This Is The Kit.

Insatiable. Jody and The Jerms

A second single by Jody and The Jerms on WoNoBlog. With a 'Last Train To Clarkville' kind of riff and a Kirsty MacColl flavoured tune Insatiable is irresistible. Singer Jody Jeger sings with this bittersweet voice that simply makes listening to her compulsory. The Jerms are behind her but the song is mixed in such a way that it is all about Jody. She carries the song and leads the band here. What does happen behind her is an attempt at pop perfection though. Listen closely and you will hear that everything falls into its right place. That nice riff, the little organ that comes forward a little a few times, the drum fills and bass runs. It all spells perfect pop. Insatiable is a beautiful song. No more words are needed here.

Tiger. Pip Blom

There must have been something in the water in the Blom - Smit home during the pandemic as both have come up with so different music afterwards. First Willem Smit with his tremendously good Personal Trainer album, 'Big Love Blanket' and now Pip Blom with the first new single Tiger. This is a daring move, because when even a New Zealand record store cum record label announces your new album as a must order, that tells you something. Tiger is a pop-short single with loads of electronics, far removed from the alternative pop/rock Pip Blom played. The guitar is still there in the intro but drops away for electronic beats and synths. I do not really know yet make what to make of the new course. Context will definitely be provided soon but I am willing to give the band the benefit of the doubt for now. The band is evolving and as such that is a good thing.

Come Fare Away With Me, The Jean Ritchie Experience. Kate MacLeod

The third single from Kate MacLeod's project of exploring the songs of Jean Ritchie is here. The second on this blog. Kate MacLeod plays all the instruments you hear, all to do with strings in one form or another. On vocals she is accompanied by Morgan Morrison, Paul Hammerton and Stephanie Thompson. Together they create an atmosphere of what I have learned to call British folk. As all involved, including Jean Ritchie, are from the U.S. this seems a bit awkward to write down. It shows how far music transcends borders and imagination. Influences come from many sources, as the title to the song already indicates. Who knows what Jean Ritchie's grandparents were singing to her in her youth, inspiring her to make her own music? Come Fare Away With Me is song of intricate and inner beauty that radiates through Kate MacLeod's version. The kind that touches. The contrast with some songs above here could not be bigger, yet its effect drives home to me in a clear and pleasant way.

Wout de Natris