Sweet Heart Sweet Light by Spiritualized

4 years have passed and it’s once again time for your prescribed dose of J.Spaceman. A man who never fails to come up with something that’s both exciting and fresh whilst sounding exactly like his previous record.

Originally destined to be called ‘Huh?’, J Spaceman a.k.a. Jason Pierce decided to rename the record ‘Sweet Heart Sweet Light’ to avoid any ridiculous sketch-like exchanges with staff when trying to purchase the album. Despite this, he has revealed that he hopes the album will transcend it’s title and be referred to by it’s cover in Beatles ‘White Album’ fashion. Well, it’s good to aim high! In an interview with Ryan Dombal, Pierce explained that the striking album artwork has been specifically designed to make the most of all formats whether it be 12” LP, CD Jewel or MP3 1” artwork. I feel he has at least succeeded in that, but don’t personally find the cover as dynamic as the band’s other releases.  As with everything Pierce creates, there is a strong theme and brand to uphold within the name Spiritualized. There is no doubt that all his output is subject to great scrutiny and consideration from the artist himself, and not just from a musical point. The typographical artwork couples the record with 2008’s ‘Songs in A & E’, just as ‘Amazing Grace’ and ‘Let It Come Down’ came as a pair before it. The comparison goes beyond the artwork though, with strong themes grounded in medical recovery and an all round reflective nature. This comes as no surprise, seeing that during recording and mixing Pierce battled with a diagnosis of a degenerative liver disease. This is undoubtedly an influence on everything from the warning label cover through to the music itself, and continues the idea from previous releases, that music has the medicinal properties necessary for recuperation.

The standout tracks on this album offer up a range of tones and textures. As with all the albums since ‘Ladies and Gentlemen we are Floating in Space’ these tracks are sadly buffered with what feels like filler. Repeat listening sometimes corrects this but so far ‘Get What You Deserve’, ‘Headin’ For The Top Now’ and the closer, ‘So Long You Pretty Thing’ have left no mark. The strong tracks more than make up for this. ‘Hey Jane’ launches straight in with a catchy hook and pacey lyrics that feel like we’ve hit the ground running. It’s a peculiar song in that it’s split into two halves but ultimately ends up feeling more like two songs linked by similar ideas. This format reminds me of Sparklehorse’s ‘Maria’s Little Elbows’ and like that song it succeeds based on the strength of the two pieces that have been stitched together. The song ends with a repeating gospel chant of the album title, and it feels like we are in familiar and comfortable territory. ‘Little Girl’ follows with a necessary slowing in pace, but not with out a nifty little riff that keeps you hooked in. Later in the album comes a reminder of the ‘Fire’ trilogy on ‘Songs in A & E’ in the form of ‘Too Late’, a simplistic track about regret. For my money, this works and the strings carry you in tidily to a gentle verse followed up with an anthemic chorus hitting the usual fire and love lyrics that we’ve come to expect. ‘I Am What I Am’ enlists the help of Dr. John who also collaborated on LAGWAFIS, so there is no surprise that this sounds like ‘Cop Shoots Cop’. Dr. John’s influence is easily heard in the gospel backing vocals that chant in call and response fashion, reminiscent of early 70’s blues and soul. Paired with the repetitive bass and guitar loops and seasoned with noise breaks, we are left with a track that sounds like it’s leaped straight out of Frank Zappa’s ‘Over-Nite Sensation/Apostrophe’ recording sessions.

Offering a little respite, along comes ‘Mary’, a track that builds at a respectful speed ending up with a big, but wholly controlled sound backed by a string section. This is followed by the gentle ‘Life is a Problem’, which follows in a similar vein but without the dynamic build. The end to this record is sadly not as strong as the start, but at the same time feels well placed in terms of track order.

Whilst you could easily run through this album and find another Spiritualized track that each song mimics, I think that idea is uncharacteristic of Pierce. Rather than clones, I think these are callbacks and references to previous works with themes of fire, electricity and religion running through all his albums, right back to the Spacemen 3 days. I find it difficult to imagine that someone renowned for recalling albums for tweaking and remixing would fall into a trap of re-appropriating old songs. This would be an easy criticism to make, and it seems many reviewers are choosing to jump on it, but I find the self referencing brings a weight and certainty to these subjects and end up feeling like they are not only points that are important to Peirce, but in fact issues that plague his mind.  This ties in neatly with the constant feel of regret that runs through his work.

This is a strong album that has been well worth the wait. Whilst it is unlikely Spiritualized will ever again hit the heights of their first three studio albums, the new material remains worthy. Their latter works appear to be building into a period of their own and with each release this this is cemented and recognised.

The Year Of Our Lord, 1998

E-Bow The Letter by R.E.M
featuring Thom Yorke (singing the Patti Smith parts)



Lucky by Radiohead
featuring Michael Stipe

The Year Of Our Lord, 1994

My Curse by The Afghan Whigs

Featuring Marcy Mays

The Year Of Our Lord, 1993

Missing Link by Dinosaur Jr and Del Tha Funkee Homosapian
with help from Mike Watt & Mike D.

Rhinoceros by The Smashing Pumpkins

Taken from ‘No Nirvana’ edition of The Late Show

Hey Jane by Spiritualized

Spiritualized are preparing to release their new album 'Sweet Heart Sweet Light' on Domino Records next month. Here is the first single from the album complete with a superb video.

They also appeared on BBC 6 Music last week to celebrate of 10 years of broadcasting. Below is their setlist and a you can still see the video streaming on the BBC 6 Music website.

1. Hey Girl

2. Lord Let It Rain On Me

3. Little Girl

4. She Kissed Me (And It Felt Like A Hit)

5. I Am What I Am

6. Come Together

Ekstasis by Julia Holter

As I began to worry that I might be bored with reverb drenched avant garde pop compositions, an album like this comes along and leaves me awe struck! It has taken me weeks to get around to writing about ‘Ekstasis’ because every time I listen to it I hear something new and adjust my feelings towards it. 

Hot off the heels of her successful (though limited in release) late 2011 debut ‘Tragedy’, Julia Holter is back with another full album within 6 months. The quick turn around period has not left the material suffering and it is as exciting as her first record, and perhaps more accessible. In an interview, Julia Holter revealed that it was originally meant to be an EP that grew with each track she added until her manager suggest producing it as an LP. ‘Ekstasis’ is refreshingly different to ‘Tragedy’ (as different as this type of music can be) and feels a lot more like a collection of songs rather than a sound composition. Each album has its merits, and it seems appropriate to discuss both as they appear to have strong links. ‘Goddess Eyes’ features in some form on ‘Tragedy’ once and is revisited twice more on the new record. It is clearly the most self-contained work on her debut and has the most life as an individual song. The vocoder lyrics echo the early music of ‘Air’ with a sound that also strays into trash-indie territories. I can’t help but think of Broken Social Scene’s ‘Anthem For A Seventeen Year-Old’ when I hear it, but I’m not sure how well it sat with the overtly experimental feel of the rest of 'Tragedy'. On ‘Ekstasis’ it has found a far more comfortable home and is far better fitted to the record.

The album opens with ‘Marienbad’, an immediate and melodic song that seems to borrow ideas from classical composition as much as it does from modern music. It has an infectious pace to it that builds up and slows back down again across the duration and already the exciting detailed approach can be heard in little idiosyncratic stings and motifs embedded into the sound. The little vocal splurge that repeats through out seems distorted out of recognition and could easily be mistaken as a reed instrument in an orchestra. ‘Our Sorrows’ follows with a gentler sound and the welcome return of some field recordings, a common factor in ‘Tragedy’ and arguably the basis of the record. This time though they are weaved into a far more conventional song rather than the free and exploratory sound of its predecessor. ‘In The Same Room’ kicks in with strong percussion including a familiar sampled handclap sound that leaves this song open to comparisons to Grimes. We are quickly out of the territory though, with ‘Boy In The Moon’ a song with strained lyrics working against the melody giving an unsettling break in the record and adding new shades and textures.

‘Moni Mon Amie’ is for me the song that could have been much more (or less as the case may be). It opens with a simplistic drone and vocal that then builds across the duration into a much fuller sound. I can’t decide whether it builds too quickly or whether it should build at all, but it feels a shame to overcrowd such a delicate vocal. I think I would have liked to have it play out with little behind it in contrast with the rest of the album. Perhaps this is nit-picking but it’s not quite the song I wanted it to be.

At first I thought ‘Ekstasis’ was a collection of ideas, with each track sounding like an exploration of electronic music, but felt little tie between the tracks. With each listen, this idea disappeared and the true nature of the record became established. The unexpected flashes of free-jazz found in ‘Four Gardens’ and ‘This is Ekstasis’ at first seemed to come from nowhere and seemed out of place. Now I can’t think how or why I felt that way. All these little flourishes are what separates ‘Ekstasis’ from the crowd, and what at first seemed unexpected now feels completely necessary in creating her unique sound. All this occurs against Julia Holter’s unmistakable voice veering between ethereal and haunting. There definitely seems to be a gothic presence to this record with moments that hark back to the dark sounds that emerged in the late 80’s, but there is no doubt that this is a contemporary album with a very current sound. On first listen it would be very easy to dismiss this record as another release in the recent boom of electronic music. I immediately compared it to ‘Halfaxa’ by Grimes and Liz Harris’ Grouper. Whilst there are similarities to both, it only helps establish her name alongside them as a new sound and movement for this decade. I just hope this wave doesn’t become too oversaturated, as I would hate to get bored of these albums.

Myth by Beach House