I’m not at all dismissing her work, or her validity or influence as an artist, but this is just not for me. I knew prior to going into this that it was definitely going to be a “challenging” record, but I had no idea it would be so.. completely atonal, void of melody. It also sounds completely different from what I had expected, based solely on articles/reviews I had been reading. There were certain parts of the record that finally began to grab me, but just as quickly as they began to emerge from the dark void, they were struck down by jarring, unnerving, immense blocks of noise, and I don’t mean the kind I enjoy, sheets of heavy white noise.
I wanted to like this, but simply couldn’t. I may return to it, for further evaluation. I respect her utterly uncompromising musical stance, but I guess my response to this record only provides further evidence as to why Laura Nyro and Vashti Bunyan are my 60s chanteuse’s of choice.