Born in October 1979, Bat for Lashes is the moniker of the English Artist, Songwriter, and Multi-Instrumentalist Natasha Khan. In her decade-long career, she has released four studio albums: 2006’s sparse, cinematic, and vaudeville-inspired Fur and Gold, 2009’s EDM-flavored Two Suns, 2012’s tribal, slightly angular, and Trip-Hop-laced The Haunted Man, and this year’s sonically slow and more laidback affair of The Bride. The music of Bat for Lashes has been likened to those of Siouxsie & the Banshees, Björk, Kate Bush, PJ Harvey, Annie Lennox, and Tori Amos, certainly for its Tribal rhythms, sparse synthesizer flourishes, Dream Pop sensibilities, World-music tendencies, and strong feministic lyricism.
Released on July 1, 2016, The Bride opens with the short, but sweet harp-led ballad “I Do.” Then there comes the similar heart-rending sentiments of “Joe’s Dream,” whose heartbeat-mimicking bass thuds and low-key piano punches dominate the sparse instrumentation of the song. It will fit well on a playlist that includes equally introspective ballads such as Siouxsie & the Banshees’ “The Last Beat of My Heart,” Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Game,” and Everything but the Girl’s “I Always Was Your Girl.”
“In God’s House” follows the same sonic mood of its predecessors, but it shines brighter and soars more stellarly with its slightly syncopated rhythm and undulating synthesizer lines. The ensuing “Honeymooning Alone,” on the other hand, pursues a subtly ominous, funereal Gothic direction akin to the tendencies of The Cure (“Out of This World”) when Robert Smith and his mope-mates switch to miserablist mode. The drivingly upbeat and cinematic “Sunday Love” is a change of pace; its sense of urgency resonates The Postal Service’s “Such Great Heights” and New Order’s “Krafty,” taking the listener to the corner dance floor of a dimly lit lounge.
The following quadrumvirate of conceptual songs – “Never Forgive the Angels,” “Close Encounters,” “Window’s Peak,” and “Land’s End” – returns the album to its ghostly sounds and contemplative musings, echoing similar ambient and dreamy excursions by the likes of Sarah Brightman (“Glosoli”), Enya (“Echoes in Rain”), Enigma (“Return to Innocence”), and Cocteau Twins (“Eperdu”). Then there is the even slower piano ballad “If I Knew” and the tubular-sounding “I Will Love Again,” which are further dips into somberness and contemplation. Finally, Bat for Lashes closes The Bride with the sparkling ballad “In Your Bed,” which also finds the vocals in its most soulful and soothingly introspective moment.
With four albums in ten years, Bat for Lashes has long found its sound and niche in the music scene, founded on a style that has effectively combined the maturity of the lyricism and mystical attractiveness of Dream Pop and World/Classical music. CrypticRock gives The Bride 4 out of 5 stars.
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