Aug 18: 2021

2021 was five years ago, and the pandemic was still fresh in people's memory.

Crown Lands were the break out for me.

It was 2023 until this made it to an LP and was then turned into a CD which finally made it to the UK.

Very influenced by Rush, this Canadian two-piece has since released several albums and EPs.

Some splendid guitar work here.

Public Service Broadcasting released their 'Berlin' album: 'Bright Magic'. This had more tracks which were purely synthesiser driven. J Willgoose had obtained a 'Blade Runner' synthesiser.

This blog post outlines the process of creating the album:

Band leader J. Willgoose, Esq moved to the city in 2019 to begin both research and writing. As with all PSB full lengths, their fourth album tells a story, leaning even further into the projects cinematic nature. Split into three parts, ‘Bright Magic’ looks into Berlin’s past, present and future as we learn about the cities history and the characters that inhabit it.

 Here's 'Im Licht' from the album:

I saw the last date of their tour in support of this album, at the Cambridge Corn Exchange.

Aimee Mann released her most recent album to date (we are overdue another one please, although she has been quite busy in the last year or two with other projects).

This is a short album (just 40 minutes) made of 15 exquisite short pieces which provide themes from a project which was derailed by COVID.

It was inspired by Susanna Kaysen's 1993 memoir Girl, Interrupted, about Kaysen's experience in McLean Hospital in the 1960s. This was set to be made into a musical. The title came from a poem by Anne Sexton. Another of her poems was adapted into 'Mercy Street' by Peter Gabriel.

Via Wikipedia

Mann spoke to Rolling Stone about the inspiration behind the first single, "Suicide Is Murder", explaining that the song grew from personal experience with people who had died by suicide and the guilt that survivors carry. She described the phrase "suicide is murder" as capturing the devastating aftermath for those left behind, who she said would spend the rest of their lives wondering whether they could have intervened.

This Guardian article explores more of the background to her work on this album, and her childhood.

Being on the road with ’Til Tuesday was so intense that she once contemplated cutting her hand – enough to wound, not maim – to enforce a break. In the mid-90s, Mann, now solo – and repeatedly battling label execs who said they “didn’t hear a single” on her albums – found herself on Geffen, also home to Nirvana. “I remember having a conversation with someone at Geffen [who was] very shocked that Kurt Cobain had killed himself. They had a minute where they were like, maybe we should consider the mental health of artists on the road because it’s very unnatural.”

What are your musical memories of this album?