The Swell Season Strict Joy (deluxe Edition) 2cd 2009 404

ARTiST: The Swell Season
ALBUM: Strict Joy
BiTRATE: 165kbps avg
QUALiTY: EAC Secure Mode / LAME 3.97 Final / -V2 –vbr-new / 44.100Khz
LABEL: Anti-
GENRE: Indie
SiZE: 142.98 megs
PLAYTiME: 1h 55min 31sec total
RiP DATE: 2009-10-23
STORE DATE: 2009-10-23

Track List: Disc #1/2
——–
01. Low Rising                       4:47
02. Feeling The Pull                 2:20
03. In These Arms                    3:33
04. The Rain                         3:40
05. Fantasy Man                      5:06
06. Paper Cup                        3:21
07. High Horses                      4:59
08. The Verb                         4:31
09. I Have Loved You Wrong           5:04
10. Love That Conquers               3:57
11. Two Tongues                      3:45
12. Back Broke                       4:02

Track List: Disc #2/2
——–
01. All The Way Down (Live)          4:06
02. Lies (Live)                      4:26
03. This Low (Live)                  5:32
04. Drown Out (Live)                 5:44
05. When Your Mind’s Made Up (Live)  3:32
06. I Have Loved You Wrong (Live)    9:42
07. Falling Slowly (Live)            5:39
08. Leave (Live)                     2:59
09. What Happens When The Heart      4:32
    Just Stops (Live)
10. Lay Me Down (Live)               3:26
11. Once (Live)                      4:30
12. If You Want Me (Live)            5:19
13. Broken Hearted Hoover Fixer      0:47
    Sucker Guy (Live)
14. Fitzcarraldo (Live)              6:12

Release Notes:
——–
After the relative success of the indie film “Once”, and the Oscar award winning
success of the ballad from the film, “Falling Slowly”, this dynamic duo
consisting of Glen Hansard of the Frames and Czech singer/songwriter Markéta
Irglová were riding high on the wings of exposure. The on-screen chemistry in
the film also was completely relevant in their musical chemistry as well with
the release of their debut album, under the moniker The Swell Season.

The album was a realistic look and portrayal of the more personal relationship
the two shared. Glen Hansard, nearly twice the age of his counterpart, had even
once said “I had been falling in love with her for a long time, but I kept
telling myself she’s just a kid”. The love affair coupled with the undeniable
talents of both musicians and their incredible songwriting skills made for one
of the best releases of the year. Glen Hansard’s brash, fragile, and convincing
Irish voice and simplistic, softly strummed guitar work coupled with Irglova’s
innocent, angelic, restrained voice and beautiful piano skills made for an
endearing and incredible listening experience.

Now, three years later, Hansard and Irglova are no longer romantically involved,
but return with another different outlook on their personal relationship with
their latest album, entitled “Strict Joy”. The familiar gloom and despair
returns, but with a slight hint of optimism sparsely spread throughout. In fact,
the album starts in a somewhat upbeat tone with the track “Low Rising”. It’s a
jazzy number played at a slow tempo, complete with horns and a fairly
interesting bassline and bluesy guitar riffs not entirely unlike something you’d
hear for Glen Hansard’s other project, The Frames. Despite the outward
appearance of an uplifting track, the lyrics are still obviously representative
of Hansard’s inner turmoil with lyrics like “I want to sit you back and talk, I
want to pull back the veils and find out what I’ve done wrong”.

The general uplifting feel continues with the second track “Feeling the Pull”, a
short piano driven track with harmonica and Hansard’s voice convincingly
swooning over top. It’s not until the third track “In These Arms” that the duo
began to settle into their own niche, and familiar territory. Slow,
softly-strummed guitar chords and Hansard’s delicate voice carry the verse, and
then Irglova’s gentle spurts of cascading piano notes and soft vocals
complementing him in the chorus singing “Maybe I was born to hold you in these
arms”. It’s a beautiful track, and one of the highlights of the album.

The album maintains that general feel throughout. “The Rain” displays Hansard’s
genuine songwriting ability in it’s finest form. “Fantasy Man” is a primarily
acoustic number and the first track on the album that gives Marketa Irglova
primary vocal duties. “High Horses” is a genuinely haunting and atmospheric
track and a welcome departure from their general formula. The same heartache and
despair is relevant, but the song features some incredible vocal passages, then
a slow building instrument buildup towards the end that almost explodes into a
huge wall of sound and before anti-climatically fading into softness once more
as it ends. “I Have Loved You Wrong” is another highlight. A slow, brooding bass
line complements another primarily Irglova sung track that carries on hushed and
entrancing, until Hansard finally lends his vocal duties in the beautiful climax
where both singers repeat the line “Every now and then on my mind” as the music
cuts out and their intertwining vocals are all that’s left, making for one of
the more emotional and heartfelt moments of the album.

“Two Tongues” is easily one of the more emotionally fragile and heartbreaking
songs of the album and once again the pair’s vocals build to a chorus where you
can almost feel bitterness between the two as they deliver their lines. And
“Back Broke” closes the album with another hushed acoustic ballad that ends the
album on another note of melancholy, fragile despair.

Overall, the album is extremely strong and entrancing. The way their vocals and
guitar and piano parts interweave with one another perfectly make it truly
pleasant on the ears, and the backdrop of swelling strings and choir vocals
spread throughout provide atmosphere and an entrancing effect that pulls you in
and won’t release it’s grasp until the very end. This album is meant for dreary
days, but it’s easy to find comfort in two people who display heartache so
convincingly and with such beauty.

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