Monday 18 July 2011
Spellwork
Have you seen Game of Thrones? It’s a medieval fantasy television series from HBO that’s based on a series of novels written by George R. R. Martin, who has been described as the “American Tolkien” for his work in the genre. I’m not a fantasy fiction fan, but after a co-worker of mine convinced me to give the series a try, I have to admit that I’m really enjoying it. So what does this show have to do with Austra and Feel It Break, you ask? Very little on the surface, but the record and show have become inexplicably and inextricably connected in my mind these past few weeks.
I love the heat and sun of summer–I try not to waste it by staying inside watching TV or checking email—so Game of Thrones is a pleasure I reserve for when the sun’s gone down. One night, after having watched a couple episodes back-to-back, I decided to unwind a bit before bed by throwing on Feel It Break. In the crisp cool air and darkness of my basement, as “Darken Her Horse” and “Spellwork” swirled around my ears, I kept having flashback images of Game of Thrones: knights wielding swords against each other; peasants and prostitutes in various stages of pleasure and pain; kings and queens plotting strategy and revenge. Austra’s nouveau gothic beats paired with Katie Stelmanis’ soaring theatrical voice seemed like the perfect accompaniment to the show’s dark, stark settings and parallels the way sex, violence, and swearing have charged the familiar formula of the show with a jolt of vitality and spunk that’s often missing from big, epic fantasy productions like this. The same is true of Feel It Break. Austra’s music is built on an established formula and genre but it’s infused with a modern, adult sensibility that gives it new legs.
Being a great soundtrack for a muted TV program does not a “record of the year” make, however. Earlier this year in my review of the LP I said that Feel It Break is “a record that bristles with excitement, sounds fresh and new and recognizable all at once,” and I still stand by the statement. Initially, I spent more time listening to its songs in isolation. On their own, songs like “Beat And The Pulse” and “Lose It” are some of the best Canadian singles of the year. It’s when I listen to Feel It Break as a whole record that I find it loses some of its momentum. “Shoot The Water” and album closer “The Beast” are bones of contention for me; they’re points on the record where the whole goth-gone-electronic thing veers to close to schmaltz for my liking. Still, it’s futile to resist the seductive allure of “The Villain”, “Darken Her Horse” and the aforementioned moments of electronic brilliance. Few (if any) Canadian records have dared to be this bold, this forward-thinking in the past year. It may not have the consistency of some of the other short listers, but Feel It Break’s place among the 10 best Canadian albums of the year is a well-deserved honour.
Feel It Break was released May 17 2011 on Paper Bag Records.
With much thanks to the good folks at Stage Fright Publicity and Paper Bag Records, I’m happy to announce that I have a copy of Austra’s Feel It Break to give away to one lucky QBiM reader and follower. For your chance to win please visit the Quick Before It Melts Facebook page and “Like” this post or leave a comment about it on our Wall. A winner will be randomly selected from all the Likes and Comments left before midnight, July 25. For those not on Facebook, you can also enter by leaving a comment through the link below.
MP3: Austra “Beat And The Pulse”
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This entry was posted on Monday, July 18th, 2011 at 8:35 am and is filed under MP3. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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