Blonde Redhead - Misery is a Butterly

I always thought of myself as an armchair Blonde Redhead fan. I didn’t own any of their albums, and I definitely didn’t have a favorite song. I did know that I found their sound interesting and very much enjoyed listening to their previous release, Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons. So when I heard that the new BRH album had come out, I thought it would be the perfect time to step up and hear it before anybody else told me how good it was. From the opening couple of tracks, I was hooked. Kazu Makino and Amedeo Pace again share vocal duties that give these songs their distinctive BRH sound. The album opener “Elephant Woman” finds Kazu’s lyrics wrapped in a full sweeping orchestral arrangement. While “Messenger” features a wonderfully tragic guitar riff to complement Amadeo’s plea of “How can I keep anything to myself?” The overall sound of the album carries this sad, but beautiful, feeling with string and key arrangements permeating from start to finish. The album’s feeling of delicacy and frailty comes not only from its intricate instrumentals and soft vocals but with lyrics as vulnerable as in "Falling man": “I’m just a man still learning how to fall.” I know the one thing that might keep some listeners from fully enjoying this disc are the vocals, but I see them as being a fully-integral part of the music. They complement the other instruments and vice versa. This is a step in the right direction for Blonde Redhead, who I feel have not lost their playful spirit despite making their most somber record to date. Play this on that long and rainy ride back home from your ex-lover’s house. [www.4ad.com]