Beach House - Bloom
To the rest of the world at least, Alex Scally and Victoria Legrand, a French/Baltimore duo, are already on their fourth album. Niece, of course, to the legendary Michel, there's very much an immediate sense of orchestral songwriting about the duo's work and the use of increasingly varied sounds and instruments give them a surprisingly (given the number of bandmembers) full acoustic.
Beginning with one of the sunniest and brightest guitar pieces in 'Myth' that you'll hear all year, the track is pure dreampop bliss that ably rivals M83's Hurry Up, We're Dreaming project in concept and execution, and this whole sense of synth-scorched mirage continues into the hazy, distorted 'Wild'. Dominated by folksy guitar twangs and Legrand's husky cries, the track is full of potential and really jumps out of the speakers (/headphones/other methods). Reverting then to a simplistic 'Lazuli' where the opening melody provides the skeleton for the rest of the track, whilst Legrand sighs "like no other, you can't be replaced" to further heighten the emotional response such backgrounds demand.
Subsiding into 'Other People' with birdsong and insect noises, the fourth track really turns up the contrast and injects some colour to their sound. A far more conventional pop song, the track follows a more guidelined and typical rhythm and structure, but without losing too much of its ethereality. They return though to gasps and exhales in the (very Beatles Because-sounding) intro to 'The Hours', which promises "it's deeper than you can breathe/ it's farther than you could see", conveniently hinting at some outer-body experience that they believe they can convey. If you look at it cynically, anyway. 'Troublemaker' borrows a couple of 1960s psychedelic sounds (strongest resemblance I can picture right now is the Doors' Summer's Almost Gone) for a more summery appeal, whilst 'New Year' offers a touch of 80's disco balladry, sounding very Pet Shop Boys and singing "all you ever wanted/ is it getting away?" with poised sulkiness.
Their closest attempt at standalone track, 'Wishes' contains their most-rock moments and the dream sequences are sort-of sent to the background whilst these before-unseen riffs give the album another fresh appeal. Ultimately though it's another synthpop extravaganza with glittery high notes and another far-away vocal, rather than a commanding single - but at this stage in the album it almost feels too good to even try for that. 'On the Sea' begins with a charming piano melody and Legrand comes across as more coherent, more direct, listlessly crooning "would you rather go unwilling? The heart is full and now it's spilling" in her best Joni Mitchell impression. It's easily the cutest track, and a nice comedown, before 'Irene' and its hidden track 'Wherever You Go' sign off with shrill, piercing notes and stronger riffs, giving the whole album a bit of a linearly climactic feel.
The only problem I could forsee having with this album though is that there's no real stand-out song. Each has its moments and graces but, and I'm sorry to bluntly compare them to another artist, unlike M83, there's no 'Midnight City' or 'Raconte-moi Une Histoire'. The tracks quite subtly pick up where the other left off, and although that really is its charm, and although I believe this album could probably continue to grow on me, some kind of innate pop-fan is yearning for a brilliant song, rather than a beautifully crafted album.
Rating: 8.5/10
Highlights: Myth, The Hours, On the Sea, Wishes, New Year
Avoid: n/a
Artwork Watch: Is it a negative-photo of a colander? An extreme close-up of a cheese grater? Or something entirely outside of the kitchen? Provocative.
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