Women - Women (Album Review)

 

Women - Women

(2008)

My copy: 2008 press by Jagjaguwar.

Women formed officially in 2007 in Calgary, eventually recording their debut full-length with Chad VanGaalen. Their sound manages to tread a careful line between sweetly melodic and harrowing, abrasive lo-fi rock. This debut, while intentionally harsh and under-produced, gives power to its occasionally sugary moments by making them work in conjunction with such atonal fits of noise. 

Brief intro “Cameras” initializes the mood with disparate harmonies and rattling guitars, though a chirping synth appears as a light at the end of the tunnel. The improvised drum sounds of “Lawncare” further the industrial, alien gaggle of hissing syncopation before a lovely clean guitar riff cleaves the darkness in two along with tight vocal harmonies. This may be their debut as the band Women, but these are clearly experienced writers who understand how to re-contextualize important motifs at any given moment. “Woodbine” is a mirage of tambourine and ambiance, leading into their most popular song “Black Rice,” which utilizes hooky vocals and euphoric falsetto to deliver a catchy moment of reprieve though the song itself feels underdeveloped compared to their more complex endeavors. 

The uneven, rapid-fire arpeggios of “Sag Harbor Bridge” coalesce nicely with a simple rhythm section, playing a more tasteful form of math-rock. “Group Transport” touches on lo-fi folk with galloping acoustic guitar and layered vocals, mixing in personality with gravelly violin and bells. They never allow intimacy to last terribly long, often cutting these personal moments short. “Shaking Hand” is their post-punk masterpiece in which vaguely dissonant riffs are tirelessly reworked around a jagged rhythm section until the tension is unceremoniously released into new melodies that grow more and more serene, even in their uneven delivery, before finally ending on a sour note. The laid-back groove of “Upstairs” allows the bass to take the lead for a change, before the progression trips into jarring notes in the second half, forcing the bass back into the shadows while the guitars threaten to spill over into the spotlight. 

Discordant bursts gradually build up steam on “January 8th,” crashing into a series of distorted slams backed by a paranoid, monotone voice. “Flashlights” is their greatest frenzy of noise, working a black hole of looped sound effects into a syncopated mess that is wretched from the void by a narrow sliver of cohesive rhythm. The album then concludes with one final comforting set of arps. 

Women would go on to face internal turbulence even in their successful tour schedules, and later tragically lost critical member Chris Reimer to heart complications in 2012. These first two records have captured a new, modern face of post-punk and noise-rock - one that channels the secret charm of the Swell Maps, etc. into a hidden pop masterclass. Through all the noise and shaky production beats the heart of satisfying harmonies and powerful payoffs; the biggest issue being that sometimes they feel too insecure to relish in this.