My Bloody Valentine - m b v (Album Review)

 

My Bloody Valentine - m b v 

(2013)


My copy: 2021 deluxe reissue by Domino Records and MBV Records.


Over 20 years had passed following the release of their album Loveless, but My Bloody Valentine’s Kevin Shields assured us in 2013 that his 1991 masterpiece would not be the band’s final work. m b v was released almost to an unfair level of expectations. Following an album that essentially serves as a bible to shoegaze fans even to this day is no simple task. 

m b v comfortably settles in with the familiarly whispered vocals on “She Found Now.” Shields proves his touch for production is not gone; only he has given the tracks on this new record more room to breathe. Distorted guitars still whirr like a haunted vacuum, but melodic strums are given room to ring out over the density. A pulsing drum machine ties it all together, but this opening track may not be what some fans expected. Instead, there is a heightened level of maturity on m b v, one that focuses more on the actual experience of crafting a song that feels more open-ended as opposed to the loveless style of deep layering. 

“Only Tomorrow” is probably the favorite of legacy fans, it feels the most like an earlier My Bloody Valentine song with its crunched out guitars and fat lead melody. “Who Sees You” is wildly hypnotic, and carries on a theme of Shields messing with typical rhythms to prevent listeners from easily slipping into drowsiness. “Who Sees You” features insane, fiery guitar lines and while it is a slower song, it has an intensity that demands attention. The production on this whole album is just as quality as ever, with fine attention to making certain elements pop and stand out while performing a tricky balancing act with the quiet vocals and low ends. 

“Is This And Yes” is where we start to see some cracks. A seductive ambient interlude, “Is This And Yes” is a bit too wide open, with its repetitive keys and drones; while it feels like it belongs in another world, it's also just a bit plain for a band like MBV. “If I Am” has warbled, alien instrumentation and a crying lead guitar riff that burns its place in one’s memory. Shields mixes guitar and vocal harmonization unlike any other rock producer, and it’s amazingly done on this album.

 “New You” is the most aired-out track on the record, and almost borders on sparse (for MBV) which is unfortunately a bit boring. “In Another Way” is fast and loud, with a hellscape of burning guitars that border on post-punk. “In Another Way” also features an almost annoying lead guitar with corny wah effects. The final two tracks are the strangest on the album, “Nothing Is” features pounding jungle drums and builds a relentless wall of syncopated noises that eventually drop out from underneath the listener; it is clear what Shields is going for here but it comes across as a bit obnoxious due to the repetitious nature. 

“Wonder 2” is an ambitious track that takes from IDM with its fast-paced beat that undergoes EQ experiments. The bass levels on this final song is almost non-existent, but Shields does this so that when the heavy guitar comes in, the low-end is almost jarring and attention-grabbing. The synth work on “Wonder 2” is reminiscent of Stereolab, and the vocals are as androgynous and subtle as ever. 

m b v is at its best when it is experimenting, but also falls flat in some of its more bizarre repetitions. This album almost feels like the result of constant brainstorming, to the point that it has looped around and become more primal and simplistic than the songs on Loveless. m b v is generally underrated, but if you listen to this record with no preconceptions, you will find a masterfully produced piece of shoegaze that ebbs and flows like no other. 

This amazing reissue from the original analog tapes is still widely available. Definitely grab this edition if you love MBV.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ovlov - Am (Album Review)

Image
  Ovlov - Am (2013) My copy: 2023 repress on purple/clear galaxy vinyl by Exploding In Sound Records Connecticut's Ovlov got their name by inverting the car brand “Volvo,” which immediately conveys the sort of nonchalant, heart-on-our-sleeve ethos that flows through their slacker (but not too slacker) style of indie shoegazing. Their full-length debut was happily snapped up by Jersey’s Exploding In Sound Records, which makes sense given the band’s proclivity for feedback squeals and heavy bass/guitar combos.  Out of the shoegaze resurgence of the 2010’s, Ovlov rejected the idea that their music had to be devoid of clear pop appeal, which is probably the reason for their most common comparison (to Dinosaur Jr.) along with frontman Steve Hartlett’s sedated, nasally croon that just barely crests over the waves of distortion. Ovlov also borrows the guitar hero sensibilities of J Mascis, though here on Am the solos are usually sloppy and crazed enough that they make for effecti...
Read more

Part Chimp - I Am Come (Album Review)

Image
  Part Chimp - I Am Come (2005) My copy: 2005 press by Rock Action Records As the millennium turned, rock music trends began to shift. In the U.S. a band called Lightning Bolt were establishing themselves as forerunners of modern noise-rock by pushing the music in increasingly weird directions. Across the pond, Mclusky were fighting the good fight with the 2002 Albini-produced Do Dallas, that wove dry, intelligent humor in between bursts of electrifying instrumental poundings. But over in London, another set of noise-crazed rockers got their start around the same time.  Part Chimp’s humor is a touch more on the nose; see album title Chart Pimp, or song title “Hitler and Jews” from the same 2002 debut. But directness is just where a band calling themselves “Part Chimp” excels. As rock began softening and going the way of the Strokes real quick, Chart Pimp offered a bastion of sludge-y rock ferocity that mostly suffered from being less able to fully capture the sheer volume ...
Read more

What Makes an Album Great

Image
            Great albums should leave lasting impressions, not only on those who listen as non-musicians, but also on the realm of music these albums occupy. In other words, a musical project should seek to leave some distinct mark on it's genre, to lay claim to some form of unique personality; this can often come in many forms, ranging from broad sound choices to subtle production techniques. This method for evaluating music seeks to make complacency the enemy, and forward movement the desired goal. This is not to say that all derivative albums are necessarily bad, as of course, outliers will always exist. Rather, the goal of an artist should, intrinsically, be to leave some reflection of their own condition, regardless of how relatable those emotions may or may not be. In music, this can be achieved in multiple ways, however I will focus on three aspects that I find particularly important when listening to music.      When co...
Read more