PJ Harvey & John Parish - A Woman A Man Walked By
Rating
RIYL
PJ HarveyNick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Cat Power
Automatic Dlamini
Release Date
03/30/2009
Label
IslandTracklist
1.) Black Hearteded Love2.) Sixteen, Fifteen, Fourteen
3.) Leaving California
4.) The Chair
5.) April
6.) A Woman and a Man Walked By/ Crow Knows Where All the Little Children Go
7.) The Soldier
8.) Pig Will Not
9.) Passionless, Pointless
10.) Cracks in the Canvas
Users Rating |
Your RatingCreate an account or log in to rate this album |
Recent Ratings |
|
|
|
PJ Harvey, or on this album going by the name Polly Jean, is quite the eccentric. She has certainly influenced many of the female vocalists we have come to love today. What is most special about her is her innate ability to collaborate with so many other artists. Whether it is Nick Cave, Josh Homme, or even Bjork, she is able to display her musical diversity. With her second album with long time friend John Parish, it is no different. A Woman A Man Walked By finds Parish and Harvey creating a grand mixture of musical endeavors.
With Parish doing all of the songwriting and Harvey doing all of the lyrics and vocal work, the two create a very dark and atmospheric album that is rooted quite a bit in the blues culture. Harvey heavily experiments with her voice so not a single song is sung the same and almost to the extent that it doesn’t sound like the same person. Either way, there is no denying her incredible vocal gift. Not to go unnoticed, Parish is able to compliment each singing style so well it seems as though these two were meant to make music together.
“Black Hearted Love” is a rocker of an opener and sets the stage for the rest of the album. It is able to grab you in and sit you down for the ride that is the rest of the album. Though the most normal sounding song of the album, it still has its quirks with an almost shrieking guitar backing Parish’s clean main guitar riff - a perfect introduction to the dark world that A Woman A Man Walked By encapsulates.
Harvey’s voice, at times, can be incredibly haunting and, at times, sounds almost as if she is possessed by an outer-being other than herself. “Sixteen, Fifteen, Fourteen” is a Middle Eastern tinged track that finds Harvey almost in a trance repeating, “Erika, is watching,” and then spookily as she pleads, “There is no laughter in the Garden, Erika, there is no laughter in the garden.” Harvey then lets out gasps at the end of the song as if whatever spirit that took hold of her has left her body.
Keeping on with the diversity theme, “Pig Will Not” is a barn burner garage-rock song. On this track, Harvey is yelling and yelping instead of singing, clearly commanding, “I will not.” The downfall to this track is that it might just be too weird trailing off into a curious piano solo to close the song, giving the track a more disjointed feeling. “A Woman and A Man Walked By / Crow Knows Where All the Little Children Go” follows the same suit. The beginning of the song starts with Harvey showing off her masculine side as she growls, “I want his fucking ass / I want your fucking ass.” Parish’s dark acoustic riff also sets the mood to Harvey’s unique vocal approach on the song, but it soon, without fluidity, transitions into another piano part with a hint of psychedelic guitar work. Both parts of the song are great pieces of music; its only pitfall is an awkward transition in between.
“Cracks in the Canvas” is the perfect closer to the album. With most albums when the last track comes along you usually sit there begging for more. With “Cracks in the Canvas,” if another song had followed it would tarnish the rest of the album. It is a spoken word track regarding death and love as Harvey requests, “Dear God, please don’t let me down this time.” The haunting organ and plucking guitar performed by Parish create the perfect atmosphere for Harvey’s introspective lyrics.
A Woman A Man Walked By is quite the follow up to 1996’s Dance Hall at Louse Point. It is a collection of unique sounds with an acquired taste. It is an album where all components (lyrics, vocals, instrumentation, songwriting, etc.) each require your undivided attention. There are a few holes where some things may not make sense and seem too awkward, but overall it is a decent listen.
--Andrew Beam
Comments