I had kinda written off Joanna Newsom prior to the release of this album, as an irritatingly twee weird folk bandwagon jumper, and I preferred acts like Devandra Banhart and Espers. Oh, how that has changed, since Devandra has become some pinup new folk hippy, and Joanna has made the kind of artistic leap last seen when Scott Walker stopped mixing it with Lulu and sang 'Snap! the waiters animate, luxuriate like planets, hovering round the sun'.
In fairness Joanna Newsom was always made for this level of artistry, taught from a young age in rural California to play piano then progressively more complex harps by liberal tutors and family members, she must have found herself in an enviable position as a late teen who had underground, avant-garde and classical music knowledge, as well as the chops to perform and create equal to her peers. Initially her music was handed to Will Oldham at a gig, this got her signed to Drag City. Following the debut (which is worth hearing, espec Peach, Plum, Pear) she brought together an inspired cast to create Ys (pronounced Ees), produced by Van Dyke Parks who brought orchestration and his history of working with meandering song suites. Engineered by Steve Albini, who recorded Newsoms voice and harp with his usual unadorned raw clarity. Jim O'Rourke and Bill Callahan of Smog also assisted with the album in various mysterious ways.
Anyhoo, Ys contains five longform labyrinth ballads, like a mix of Grimms fairy tales, old weird american folk al la Harry Smith's anthology, some of the lengthier Bob Dylan poetry (Desolation, Sad Eyed Lady), and the strange esoteric England's hidden reverse of Current 93. All sung in Newsoms high wavery untrained voice, and exuding a femininity that is addictive and alluring.
Precedents and influences for this music include Roy Harpers 'Stormcock', and The Incredible String Band.
The lyrics of Ys are incredible and would make 99.9% of current singer songwriters blush in shame. eg 'Scrape your knee, it is only skin, Makes the sound of violins'. ' A seagull weeps; 'so long' (Only Skin).
'and the articulation, in our elbows and knees, makes us buckle as we couple in endless increase' (Cosmia)
Emily, named after her sister, evokes childhood memories of sharing experiences and love with our siblings, and even contains astrological info on meteorites in the chorus!
Monkey and Bear appears a folk tale of performing animals one choosing freedom and the other more cynical animal mocking this, whilst admiring their foolhardy guts. The cost of freedom, the addiction of admiration and fame.
This album will only gain respect in the coming decades.
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