The Weight of a Wave – Uninhabitable Mansions
Annie Hart’s 4th album pushes her creative skills towards harder edge with upbeat sounds that show off punky rhythms that separate from her more mellow electro-pop offerings as a member of the great Au Revior Simone. There are still links to her past work, but this is certainly a progression and fully solo effort.
Check out this promo blurb: “The Weight of a Wave showcases Hart’s undeniable songwriting prowess. Characterized by an eclectic mix of poppy basement rock to energetic krautrock-inspired jams, each song was crafted in what Hart and her friends affectionately call “Song Challenges,” producing a minimum of three songs per session. This technique grants the album an organic and vibrant quality that successfully captures a sense of spontaneity often missed in studio recordings.” Could not agree with this more – you can hear the urgency and organic nature of the songs one by one. Just a testament to her writing and composition style.
Track 6, “What Makes Me Me,” is a jumpy tune, though melancholy lyrics keep reassuring the protagonist to bust out of a depressed mood. “Stop Staring at You,” track 7, has a driving bass beat and rocking guitars that are a mix of shoegaze wall of sound and pure indie rock in the vein of Throwing Muses. Track 2, “ A Crowded Cloud,” has fun 80s-like synths and a banging bass line – brooding vocals and a meditative hook. “I Never Do,” track 3, slows the rhythm – it’s a tender reflective tune that has depressing lyrics but fun claps underneath driving the song.
Track listing –
1: Boy You Got Me
2: Crowded Cloud
3: I Never Do
4: A Lot Of Thought
5: Waking Up
6: What Makes Me Me
7: Stop Staring At You
8: Falling
9: Nothing Makes Me Happy Anymore
10: While Without
Digging these: 7**, 6**, 2**, 3**, 8*, and 1*.
– (h)earwitness