Blonde Redhead – 23

Poppy music derails me sometimes. There’s usually not so much of an attention for it and yet again, I don’t really dig for music the way I used to. But pop music is either hit or miss with me; Blonde Redhead is definitely a hit.

I really like the cover to this one for whatever reason. I’m guessing it’s the combination colors with the blue being the most encompassing, the red being the most distinct and the legs being the most interesting. I especially liked the CD version with its sleeve and how it was stylishly elegant and simple. The way the music was able to layer a dreamy landscape of sounds and the way everything sounded lushly enveloped against Kazu Makino’s breathy vocals: 23 was a dreamy escape. There’s music coming out now that sounds like it and still, it’s a few years dated now.

The songs I’ve chosen here intersect the album somewhere around my imaginary midway point. The first one, “Spring and by Summer Fall,” pounds with relentless drums and male vocals for a change of pace. The song is somewhere in between a marching pace and the driving fall of leaves from trees. The melody travels in and out, and around, through the thick wall of sounds that you forget there’s a true depth here. The subtle changes in mode and mood are just that, subtle, and mostly, it’s a chase for the percussion throughout but there’s energy, intensity and plenty of fervor on this song. It goes on for a briskly pumped up drive of pop hyperflow.


On “Silently” the pop takes a step back for more dreamy proof of how the perfect ‘boom’ can sound so seamless. The moment of the song for me is when the drums come pounding through for the ultimate delivery but everything before and after is so flawlessly crafted that it all melts away together. Makino’s vocals are back as they reign in on top of the light guitar melody and swaying textures. There’s a tender amount of pumping fusion and while her voice remains the brightest star in this galaxy, the combination of beats, drums and ambience on “Silently” is where pop perfection is truly made. There’s lots more around and about on 23 but for now, here’s a slice of it to enjoy. – Bryan