PTSD from a whole cup of tea

Continuing my trip up The Guardian's Top 50 Albums of 2021

#38 : On All Fours - Goat Girl

The south London quartet’s debut was garage rock with a touch of psych; this sophomore album grandly scaled that second element up, using synths to crack open a portal out of the drab, repressive everyday. The bigger ambition was partly predicated by one member surviving cancer, and the band don’t shy from big questions about life and death: the climate crisis, capitalism and the struggle to be allowed one’s truth and identity are among the topics broached.

I think I've already listened to at least some of this, and seem to recall being a bit meh about it - so let's check if I made that up entirely, shall we?  Yeah - it seems I did because I don't remember any of it at all.  And I liked it as well, so I'm glad I was made to listen to it.  I'll be honest and say I missed it tacking the big questions that The Guardian noted - I just liked the pretty songs because I'm shallow.  It's one weird album cover though.

Wikipedia has more on the album than I was expecting to see, with the critics loving it and noticing the big questions the album was asking in exactly the way I didn't.  It also did OK commercially - #30 in the UK.

"Customers also listened to" a load of people I've never heard of, but who's not going to be intrigued as to what Porridge Radio sound like?  I liked this though and will attempt to revisit it from time to time.

#37 : Sensational - Erika de Casier

Any crush has a delicate alchemy, and liable to lurch towards obsession or revulsion as the fantasy of someone duels with the reality. On the second album by the Portuguese-born Danish songwriter, her would-be lover may be a braggart who is rude to waiters, but that smile is irresistible: what are you gonna do? Her minimalist take on turn-of-the-millennium R&B shivers with sensitivity, essaying every heart flutter and gut punch in plush bass, glassy percussion and elegant strings, while De Casier’s coy delivery brims with a beguiling sense of mystery.

There have been a lot of people saying very nice things about this on my Twitter feed and I've always had a strong suspicion I'd like it.  So, obviously, I've never made the slightest effort to listen to any of it.   And I did like it - it reminded me of Grimes, but slightly less obtuse.  You'd have to say the women are on a good run at the minute, but I suspect this might be my favourite of the lot so far.

Wikipedia has considerably more on the album than I was expecting (159 milliPeppers) and goes into several aspects of the album in considerably more depth than I could be bothered reading.  The critics mostly loved it, although it failed to trouble the charts commercially.  The main thing I took away from it all though is that her full name is Erika de Casier e Ramos Lizardo, which is a fine name indeed.

"Customers also listened to", again, a load of people I've never even heard of.  But I was glad I finally got around to listening to this because I really liked it.

#40/39 - Two slightly mysterious ladies
#36/35 - Two slightly different albums