From his early days as part of Spacemen 3 to this latest
Spiritualized album, Jason Pierce has very much retained
the hypnotic essence of his music, yet, with the last
Spiritualized album, Let
It Come Down, he introduced some rawer atmospheres.
Amazing Grace, the band’s first album
for their new label, Sanctuary, continues on the same
thread.
Breaking with the increasing lapse between albums, Amazing
Grace comes just under two years after Let
It Come Down. Gone are the months spent in
the studio perfecting the Spiritualized sound. Instead,
Pierce, reputedly one of the most perfectionists men
in the business, had this album recorded live in just
three weeks, with the band learning a song at a time
then recording it, usually in one day. Not forgetting
his themes of predilection, drugs and God, Pierce seems
to somewhat scatter them around more discreetly this
time. If the mood is definitely more consistently upbeat
than on previous records, Spiritualized still indulge
in what they do best, that is powerful hypnotic hazy
ballads that feed on gospel. Hold On, Oh
Baby, Lord Let It Rain On Me or Lay
It Down Slow are all perfect examples of Pierce’s
orchestral approach to his art. It seems however as
if he was keen on distancing himself from this image
from the opening moment of This Little Life Of Mine
and She Kissed Me (It Felt Like A Hit). If
the earlier is not miles apart from his previous work,
the later, fuelled with good ol’ blues, reflects
a more direct slant, previously only really experienced
on Let It Come
Down. Found elsewhere on this album (Never
Goin’ Back, Cheapster), Pierce seems
to voluntarily confront his inspirational sources in
a more feverish way than before. The introduction of
elements of jazz (The Power & The Glory,
Rated X), although very much taken out of their
usual context, surprises at first, but they actually
blend rather well with these ethereal compositions.
If Amazing Grace is still a far cry from the
ambitious sound of Ladies & Gentlemen...,
and appears at times patchier than its predecessor,
there are still some interesting moments to be found
here, from the burning first single taken from the album,
She Kissed Me, to the magnificent Lord
Let It Rain On Me. This album will, no doubt satisfy
the fan but might fail in bringing the band a new audience.
3.6/5 |
