David Byrne / St Vincent - Love This Giant - Art Rock LP
LP

David Byrne / St Vincent - Love This Giant



Label: 4AD

CAD 3231

Format: Vinyl, LP, Album


Country: UK & US

Released: 2012

Genre: Funk / Soul, Pop, Rock

Style: Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Experimental



Tracklist..




A1 Who

A2 Weekend In The Dust

A3 Dinner For Two

A4 Ice Age

A5 I Am An Ape

A6 The Forest Awakes




B7 I Should Watch T.V.

B8 Lazarus

B9 Optimist

B10 Lightning

B11 The One Who Broke Your Heart
Featuring – Antibalas, Dap-Kings, The

B12 Outside Of Space And Time



David Byrne of Talking Heads fame has teamed up with another brilliant nonconformist, St. Vincent (Annie Clark, formerly of Polyphonic Spree), to write and record songs set to danceable electronic beats by John Congleton, accompanied by the complex orchestrations of a horn section. Both artists sing lyrics of ambiguity and anomie that recall some of their quirky songs as solo performers, but "Love This Giant" doesn't rehash their previous work. It's is a one-of-a-kind hybrid, and I like it.

Byrne and Clark open with the first single, "Who," a very propulsive, rhythmic track on which they duet, but then they start alternating lead vocals. Clark sings the even-numbered and Byrne the odd-numbered songs until they reach "Lazarus," when they duet again. Clark takes over for the next two tracks, while the final two belong to Byrne.

The album has an arc to it, beginning with high-energy music -- jumpy and jagged on the first three cuts (I especially enjoy "Weekend in the Dust") -- then dialing back the energy somewhat for three songs whose dreamy intros bring to mind minimalist composers like John Adams, Philip Glass, and Steve Reich, particularly on "I Am an Ape." With "I Should Watch TV," they leap back for a couple of tracks into the jangly, dissonant sounds that opened the album. When Clark takes over on "Optimist" and "Lightning" (another favorite of mine), a cool, pensive atmosphere prevails. The penultimate song, "The One Who Broke Your Heart," has a cheerful, lively tone that blends the music of two more collaborators: the soulful Dap-Kings and the afro-beat band Antibalas. The last track, "Outside of Space & Time," is simply a gorgeous love song.



David Byrne & St. Vincent - Who







David Byrne and St. Vincent -- Cruel -- Minneapolis 9/15/




David Byrne and St. Vincent - Open Up About Their Brassy Collaboration



David Byrne and St. Vincent - Outside of Space and Time




David Byrne - St. Vincent - Weekend In The Dust