Bloom. On Beach House's sumptious fourth album, the band's luminescent realm engulfs listeners. A remarkable expansion of Teen Dream's ethereal lushness, Bloom sounds even bigger, almost cavernous. Long gone is Victoria Legrand merely plinking an organ and haunting a small chamber draped away from the world. Here, the record bursts forth in wide swaths, covering everything in an outsized, romantic dreaminess.
The Baltimore duo never stray far from their strengths. Alex Scally's guitar ripples with hypnotic intensity. And Legrand's voice, as always, is spellbinding. But Bloom is not just a high-water mark for their evocative sound. These are great songs. Strip away the abyss-making keyboards and swirling guitarlines, and listeners are left with lyrical, stand-alone songs. Legrand could sing any track with minimal accompaniment and it would retain its lovely aura.
Bloom sounds like the culmination of the duo's ever-increasing sense of what they can become. Like the best bands, Beach House inhabit their own private place, inviting listeners inside to experience their unique aesthetic vision. "Myth," for example, is one of the most majestic tracks of not only this year, but of any given year--indeed, its powerful allure is self-fulfilling and difficult to define: help me to name it! After the duo's first two records, it was difficult to conceive of them beyond down-tempo, sparkling bedroom pop. Now, it is hard to imagine them surpassing the depth and beauty of these last two records. Timeless. Gorgeous. Enthralling.
No comments:
Post a Comment