While I wasn't looking, Antje Duvekot released a new studio album!
I haven't given it the thorough listen her lyrics deserve, but my first impression is favorable. I'm not as fond of it as I was of The Near-Demise of the Highwire Dancer, which I think works better as an album, but there are definitely some really good songs on this release. Her lyrics continue to be the best part of her songs. Not that her voice or guitar-playing or the music she writes isn't good, because they're all excellent, but her lyrics are so good it's hard for anything to compare. They're full of these vivid, unexpected images and delightfully unusual turns of phrase.
The standout song, for me anyway, is "The Ballad of Fred Noonan." (Yes, that one.) Duvekot's history is shaky, as there's never been any evidence presented that Noonan might have been carrying a torch for Amelia Earhart, but it's a gorgeous song nonetheless. I really like the way unrequited love, egotistical drive for glory, history, and the odd technical detail of early flight intersect and intertwine in the lyrics, and the sort of epic-yet-intimate, melancholy mood of the music only enhances them.
Of the new-to-me songs, I'm also really fond of "Into the City" (though I still don't understand it; I wish the lyrics were online somewhere) and "Phoenix." I love the march-like drum line backing that last one. Fair warning, it's also one of those songs that will sock you in the gut once you pay attention to the words, or at least it did me.
"Four Stitches" was already a favorite from her live album, and while I think I still prefer the live version, this one is still excellent, and I like the verse she added. On the other hand, "Sleepy Sea of Indigo and Blue" is much better here than in the live version. "New Siberia" and "Juliet" are two I think I'll grow to like quite a bit as I listen to them.
"Glamorous Girls" is a little trite, but the combination of the waltz rhythm and Antje's voice is enchanting. The concept behind "The Life of a Princess" is also a little cliched, but she does more interesting things with it than said concept would suggest, and the chorus is lovely. I think "Noah's Titanic" is a conscious homage to "All Along the Watchtower," and it's...okay? Maybe if you like Dylan you'll like that one more.
Finally, you know those twee, vaguely-hipster romantic comedies that have sprouted like weeds in the past ten years? "The Perfect Date" is one of those in song form. Instant hate. But that's the only song I really dislike, which is a pretty good ratio for an album, in my experience.
Samples here. It's also on iTunes.
I haven't given it the thorough listen her lyrics deserve, but my first impression is favorable. I'm not as fond of it as I was of The Near-Demise of the Highwire Dancer, which I think works better as an album, but there are definitely some really good songs on this release. Her lyrics continue to be the best part of her songs. Not that her voice or guitar-playing or the music she writes isn't good, because they're all excellent, but her lyrics are so good it's hard for anything to compare. They're full of these vivid, unexpected images and delightfully unusual turns of phrase.
The standout song, for me anyway, is "The Ballad of Fred Noonan." (Yes, that one.) Duvekot's history is shaky, as there's never been any evidence presented that Noonan might have been carrying a torch for Amelia Earhart, but it's a gorgeous song nonetheless. I really like the way unrequited love, egotistical drive for glory, history, and the odd technical detail of early flight intersect and intertwine in the lyrics, and the sort of epic-yet-intimate, melancholy mood of the music only enhances them.
Of the new-to-me songs, I'm also really fond of "Into the City" (though I still don't understand it; I wish the lyrics were online somewhere) and "Phoenix." I love the march-like drum line backing that last one. Fair warning, it's also one of those songs that will sock you in the gut once you pay attention to the words, or at least it did me.
"Four Stitches" was already a favorite from her live album, and while I think I still prefer the live version, this one is still excellent, and I like the verse she added. On the other hand, "Sleepy Sea of Indigo and Blue" is much better here than in the live version. "New Siberia" and "Juliet" are two I think I'll grow to like quite a bit as I listen to them.
"Glamorous Girls" is a little trite, but the combination of the waltz rhythm and Antje's voice is enchanting. The concept behind "The Life of a Princess" is also a little cliched, but she does more interesting things with it than said concept would suggest, and the chorus is lovely. I think "Noah's Titanic" is a conscious homage to "All Along the Watchtower," and it's...okay? Maybe if you like Dylan you'll like that one more.
Finally, you know those twee, vaguely-hipster romantic comedies that have sprouted like weeds in the past ten years? "The Perfect Date" is one of those in song form. Instant hate. But that's the only song I really dislike, which is a pretty good ratio for an album, in my experience.
Samples here. It's also on iTunes.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}