Half Moon Run — A Blemish in the Great Light (Nov. 1, 2019)
⊆ Half Moon Run se vrací se svým třetím albem „A Blemish In The Great Light“ přes Glassnote. Produkoval Joe Chiccarelli (The Strokes, Beck, Killers) a představující singly „Then Again Again“ a „Flesh & Blood“. Termín, který se pokaždé vrací při popisu indie~rockerů Half Moon Run je „komplexní“ (The Guardian, Exclaim, et al. ) Ať už jsou označováni jako zasněný alt~pop, bukolický alt~folk nebo psychedelický nezávislý rock, čtyři multiinstrumentalisté ~ Devon Portielje (zpěv, kytara, klavír, bicí), Conner Molander (zpěv, kytara, klávesy, klavír) , pedal steel, basa, harmonika), Dylan Phillips (vokály, bicí, klavír, klávesy) a Isaac Symonds (vokály, bicí, mandolína, syntezátor, basa) — si udělali jméno na intelektuálních, akrobatických aranžmá a harmoniích, překrásně lemujících dynamiku celkového výrazu. Z jejich prvního alba „Dark Eyes“ (27 March 2012/Canadian Albums (Billboard) #8) se umístily dva singly pro A~list na BBC Radio 1, album získalo platinu v Kanadě a zasloužilo si uznání v Rolling Stone jako „kapela, kterou chcete sledovat“. Následovalo zlaté album „Sun Leads Me On“ (Glassnote/Oct. 23, 2015), v Canadian Albums (Billboard) jako #4, které jim umožnilo cestovat po Evropě a Severní Americe. V roce 2016 jim přidalo ocenění Juno Awards jako „Průlomovou skupinu roku (Breakthrough Group of the Year)“.♦
Location: Montréal, Québec, Canada
Album release: November 1, 2019
Record Label: Glassnote / Communion Records / Crystal Math
Duration: 40:28
Tracks:
01 Then Again 3:19
02 Favourite Boy 4:02
03 Flesh and Blood 4:58
04 Natural Disaster 3:43
05 Black Diamond 2:59
06 Yani’s Song 2:41
07 Razorblade 7:26
08 Undercurrents 2:18
09 Jello on my Mind 3:53
10 New Truth 5:09
Personnel:
• DEVON PORTIELJE — lead vocals, guitars, perc
• CONNER MOLANDER — guitars, synth, perc, backup vocals
• DYLAN PHILLIPS — synth, drums, backup
Review
By Alisha Mughal ς•ς Published Oct 31, 2019 ς•ς Score: 7
ς•ς At first listen, Half Moon Run’s latest album, A Blemish in the Great Light, is inoffensive. The record sounds much like what the indie rock band’s sound has been in the past, but the more you listen to it, the more it leaves a mark on your mind, eventually becoming indelible.
ς•ς The Montreal band have always had a grand sound, and this album does not disappoint. Instrumental complexity is star of the show; produced by Joe Chiccarelli (Frank Zappa, the Strokes), it hints at classical in some parts, like piano plucked romantically and urgently on “Undercurrents,” but in other parts sounds like ’80s synth pop, as on “Jello on my Mind” (a wonderful name for a song).
ς•ς Yet the record gets bucolic and folksy in other parts, for example, on “Flesh and Blood,” while mandolin on “Favourite Boy” adds a curiously pleasant layer to a track that has a delightful disco~esque bent. The album will remind you of so many things all at once — not in a bad way.
ς•ς This is a very complex record — deliberate and intensely thought out. But even if something is indelible, it’s not de facto groundbreaking, which is the case here. A Blemish in the Great Light is endlessly listenable. Because it is so complex, so wrought, it loses an overarching feeling to hold it together, something that might help it read as a whole, as opposed to good songs that are very well done. It’ll be a great album to drive to.
ς•ς https://exclaim.ca/ / ♦ https://junoawards.ca/nomination/08-2016-breakthrough-group-half-moon-run/
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