Beach House
Depression Cherry
[Bella Union]
Beach House are not a band to be rushed. Over their first four albums, they slowly and deliberately built their sound out from keyboard, guitar and drum machine to gradually include, well, more of those – but louder, and more layered, with a splash of live drumming thrown in.
At first, *Depression Cherry* seems to be following this straight-line progression. Opening song Levitation floats rather gently along on a bed of organ and ethereal backing vocals for the better part of six minutes, before the album descends into the wheeling distorted guitars and clipped vocal samples of lead single Sparks. Slightly noisier and more elaborate than their previous work, it sounds like the next logical step in Beach House’s development. But it’s instead used as a launchpad into Space Song, a decidedly un-raucous track reminiscent of some of their earlier output, only more delicately constructed.
The rest of the album continues to drift hypnotically in this manner, with the band keeping one foot hovering over the brakes at all times, just in case. While their music has never exactly been unhinged, to understate somewhat, it’s uncommon to see any group with such command over their own expression as Beach House display here. When the drum line on Bluebird threatens to sound too energetic, Victoria Legrand’s mannered vocals tamp down any over-exuberance. ‘Even I can’t control my nature’, she sings – this could be taken as disingenuous, though she may be referring to her preternatural discipline. Really, this is Beach House at their most wilful and self-confident, and the album is a mesmerising journey. Just don’t take it if you’re in a hurry.
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My Bloody Valentine – m b v
Words: Luke Devlin
