All PDF Details And All in one Detail like Improve Your Knowledge
Thursday, May 30, 2024
Album Review: Crowded House – Gravity Stairs
You too will want to ascend the Gravity Stairs after listening to the new album from Australian rock outfit Crowded House. Following the release of their first album in eleven years, Dreamers Are Waiting, the band returns with a fresh collection of …
You too will want to ascend the Gravity Stairs after listening to the new album from Australian rock outfit Crowded House. Following the release of their first album in eleven years, Dreamers Are Waiting, the band returns with a fresh collection of expertly written and recorded songs. Their new album is a testament to their enduring talent, featuring tracks that are deep, uplifting, and clever.
Crowded House have not slowed down since reforming in 2020 with their current line-up: singer/songwriter Neil Finn, Nick Seymour, Mitchell Froom, and Finn's sons Elroy and Liam. They've been touring and in the studio for most of the last few years, even announcing on June 1, 2023, the last day of their Dreamers Are Waiting tour, that Gravity Stairs had finished being mastered. They were recently awarded the 2024 Rolling Stone Australia Icon Award. And the business won't stop for Crowded House as they are set to embark on a world tour for the rest of 2024.
Regarding the album's namesake, Finn describes Gravity Stairs as "a metaphor for getting a little older and becoming aware of your own mortality, your own physicality... Things are getting a little harder, and there's more determination needed to get to the top, but there's still the same compulsion to climb them." Themes of mortality, such as fatherhood, the afterlife, nostalgia, and the unknown future of the planet, are woven throughout Finn's songwriting on the record.
"Magic Piano," which opens the album, is an impressive and catchy production that immediately draws the listener into the whirling mind of Finn's captivating songwriting. It establishes the overall vibe of the record—steeped in mystery while simultaneously remaining entirely familiar and captivating.
The singles "Teenage Summer" and "Oh Hi" are brilliant tunes that remind me of Wilco in their instrumentation, vocal harmonies, and structure. The selection of these songs as pre-album releases was a smart choice by the band.
The touching song "Some Greater Plan (for Claire)" stands out as a love ballad with a unique perspective. Finn turned to his father's war diary for the lyrics that painfully look at a war-torn world and plea for a distant love, asking "Do you want to heal the heart of this broken man?" I especially love the folk-mandolin-esque tremolo strumming in the song's orchestration.
The album comes to an end with the dreamy "Night Song," a wistful and glitzy pop song that reminds me of Belle and Sebastian. It is a fitting end to an album filled with impressionistic lyrics backed by adventurous soundscapes.
Gravity Stairs is a triumph from a band with such a massive legacy. Each song showcases Crowded House's signature blend of poignant lyrics and moving melodies, ensuring that listeners are both moved and inspired. Be sure to catch them live on their tour which starts this Friday at the Bowery Ballroom in New York.
Gravity Stairs is available to stream everywhere this Friday, May 31st. Listen to their singles "Teenage Summer" and "Oh Hi" now:
No comments:
Post a Comment