September Mixtape

1. Grouper - "Being Her Shadow." I was disappointed by Grouper's newest album, especially since it had such a cool title, The Man Who Died in His Boat, and backstory.  Mark Richardson nicely summarizes both in his glowing review of the album: "The title [alludes...] to a scene from Harris' childhood where she and her father came upon an empty boat that drifted to shore after the person in it disappeared. It's one of those flashes from long ago that stays with you, an early brush with the idea of mortality at a time when you're not capable of understanding exactly what it means."  It's about time Liz Harris is getting the recognition she deserves!  Her album Dragging a Dead Deer Up a Hill is so underrated; I just wish I had a similar connection with The Man Who Died.  "Vital" is the best cut from Man and a close-relative to Dragging's "Heavy Water/I'd Rather Be Sleeping," as both find surprisingly catchy melodies in their unsettling instrumentals.  But the song that suddenly struck me this month comes two tracks after "Vital": "Being Her Shadow."  As with many of Grouper's tracks, there's a palpable emotional weight to "Being."  I found its foggy haze and wind-like feedback immediately disorienting, and felt its loud, haunting vocals pulling me to a dark and discomforting place. Because "Shadow" lacks any discernible chorus or verses, or even any lyrics, it lingers, slowly surfacing the listener's/my anxieties and self-doubts.  After all, everyone occasionally feels like a mere shadow of somebody else, and "Being" transports us to the moment when we experience that reality.  Whether listening is painful or cathartic is up for debate, though as of late it seems like more people are catching on to Grouper's aesthetic.

2. Washed Out - "Feel It All Around."  Washed Out offers a different kind of ambient experience than Grouper.  Its more sensual, and optimistic, capturing the pleasures of "feeling" [it all around] rather than the anxieties of "being" [her shadow].  But they're both mood music, and on "Feel" we hear the passionate sounds of, well, passion.  The sunny waves of synths, raunchy bassline, "washed out" vocals, and tinny drums make for one very erotic song, which Annie described as 80's porn music. I think that shows how evocative "Feel" is, but I'd argue it's not nearly as cheesy!

3. Washed Out - "All I Know."   Comparing album covers between Washed Out albums hints at the differences between "Feel It All Around" and "All I Know."  While "Feel" has a narcotic, sunset-on-the-beach vibe, "All I Know" is more florid, colored by twinkling and sliding synths.  And whereas the sensual "Feel" captures and itself creates passion, "All I Know" has less of a visceral effect; it's easier just to get lost in the pretty sounds that WO beautifully weave together.  Maybe that's a superficial listen, but, for at least one month, it endured.