The Answer Is In The Beat

Julia Holter: Loud City Song (Domino, 2013)

August 7, 2013 at 11:04 pm | Posted in Reviews | Leave a comment

WCBN’s former music director continues her upward trajectory in the music world, delivering easily her most accessible and most exquisitely orchestrated album to date. First-rate orchestral avant-pop with lots of strings and horns, continents away from the lo-fi stuff she was doing half a decade ago. As with all of her music, this is going to take a long time for me to fully digest and appreciate, and opener “World” doesn’t do a whole lot for me at first, but immediately “Maxim’s I” is striking me as a truly gorgeous song. “Horns Surrounding Me” starts with close-miked running and whispering, then has minimalist organ, a “Running Up That Hill” type rhythm, and all manners of experimental yet accessible textures. “In The Green World” is the first single, and seems like a peculiar choice at first; it takes a couple minutes to really reveal itself and turn into a hummable song, but it’s representative of the album in that way. “Hello Stranger” is another slowly revealing, and very gorgeous ballad draped in reverb and strings, that sounds like it’s from the most ethereal musical ever made. “Maxim’s II” is a weirder, less ethereal, more skronky and kind of dissonant version of “Maxim’s I” (same lyrics). “He’s Running Through My Eyes” is another short piano, string and vocal piece. “This Is A True Heart” starts with trombone and some synths that can’t help but remind me of certain moments of The KLF’s Chill Out, before Julia’s vocals and a drum and standup bass rhythm come in, plus some horns and mysterious background sounds (running, car horn honking, maybe). A classy, sophisticated tune. “City Appearing” is a slow, drifting tune with a calm drumbeat and standup bass. It kind of drifts away and leaves your mind somewhere else and then album ends before you know it.