When It Falls

Today's Music of the Day is Zero 7's When It Falls. This album was given to me by a friend a few years ago, in exchange for an album of my choosing.

When It Falls is a bit spacey, but fairly grounded in its ambitions. It probably falls under the category of 'modern lounge', and might best be considered a child of something like Portishead (among others). In fleeting moments, there are some hints of Sigur Ros, but mostly, this album is a peer to artists like St. Etienne. Most of the tracks are led by a female singer (Sia, I believe) who manages to be a bit sultry without having too much smoke or fire. She leads a bright, benign guitar and no shortage of strings through a dozen brief tracks; the longest here checks in at just over six minutes.

This is a nice album, warm with colors that just waft out of even poor speakers. It's bright and friendly, like a neighbor that shares actual conversation instead of just civil courtesy. It has a gentle familiarity, albeit one that doesn't offer much in the way of surprises or variance in mood. While this may be seen as a strength, the general lack of dynamics leaves something to be desired; the songs are safe, but almost to the point of being interchangeable. The musical talent isn't really missing here, just underutilized; in particular, it would be nice to hear Sia cut loose a little bit. (Yes, I know she has solo music out there.)

In short, this album is nice but overly comfortable, and too pleasant for its own good. If this sort of music is your thing, by all means, go for it, but I won't push this on too many people.

In Other News:
I am itchy today. New soap, maybe?

This week should be busy but good. Support Your Local Catgun might have a bit of an outage later in the week due to my travel to Omaha for the Rural Alberta Advantage show. Woohoo!