Beach House
Bloom
Subpop Records
By Ellen Eldridge
If ever a time to use the overused word ethereal, the latest Beach House release, Bloom, is that time. The overall sentiment starts with the line, “Drifting in and out” on “Myth,” and the backward catalog of song lyrics further shows an unbalance among elements of the songs the way the type nearly overlaps in some places but lies far apart in other places. The jaggedly staccato lines fit together like the ragged edges of jigsaw pieces forming a solid line by which Beach House solidly maintains its stance with music. That stability across the albums showcases Beach House’s talent to capture an airy feeling; a trance-like state occurs when drifting in and out of these songs. Bloom doesn’t detract too far from the music found patterned on the 2010 release, Teen Dream, and musically as well as lyrically these songs fill a room like floating bubbles bouncing off each other and melting into one another. When those bubbles land and explode, the listener experiences the true underlying connections in the meanings of the songs. The loose and simplistic elements from guitar, keyboard, organ and vocals drive the thematic elements like backlighting on a photograph; incredibly artistic and overwhelmingly think for a duo. The craftsmanship of the album extends past the layout of the lyrics and onto the cover which is coated in tactile white dots. The trippy texture recalls puff painted t-shirts from the ‘80s and hints at the subtle texture of Braille.
Alex Scally and Victoria Legrand continue to religiously release an album every two years, and Bloom contains ten tracks that were written on the road and recorded over seven weeks at Sonic Ranch Studios in Tornillo, TX and mixed for another two at Electric Lady in NYC. Beach House co-produced with Chris Coady, and the band hits the road on May 8 in Miami.
They play The Georgia Theatre in Athens on May 12.
