All Mirrors by Angel Olsen.

The weather has been awful today, dark and rainy. I haven’t left the house all day. A huge contrast to yesterday which was a pleasant sunny day. I decided to make the most of it and caught the bus over to Warminster. You have to wear a face mask on the bus now, and half of the seats are taped off to keep people apart. I had time for a quick scout around the charity shops before I met my friend. In the Blue Cross shop I found a 1984 first edition in very good condition of Money by Martin Amis for only £1.45. I should make a nice profit on that when I sell it. Then I thought I would treat myself to a new CD. In the record shop I could not decide what to get. I almost bought a newish album by Bob Dylan or Neil Young, but I didn’t because I wanted to hear something fresh to my ears. I spotted an album called All Mirrors by Angel Olsen. I had heard one or two of her songs previously on BBC 6 Music and had heard that she had a new album coming out. I thought that this was the one, but it isn’t. The album I bought came out in October 2019.

I have played it twice today and have not decided yet if I like it or not. It might grow on me after a few more listens. The opening track is called Lark. It begins very quietly but builds to a cataclysmic ending. This album is awash with violins, violas, cellos, trumpets, synthesisers, and many other instruments, especially drums. One of my problems is that even with my reading glasses on I have trouble reading the tiny print of the lyrics in the accompanying booklet, so it is hard  to understand what the songs are about. From what I can make out, the subject matter seems to be the break-up of her personal relationships. It is all very enigmatic. I like art to be about the human condition in general, things that apply to everyone. The private lives of individuals aren’t that interesting.

 I wasn’t too impressed with the title track All Mirrors, but I quite liked the third song Too Easy which was a much simpler arrangement with just four players. New Love Cassette I also enjoyed and the cacophony of sound at the end reminded me a bit of the Beatles Day In The Life. What It Is I found to be one of the more immediately accessible songs because of its simple rhythms. Impasse is a swirling mass of sounds. I found the arrangements almost overpowering at times on this album with the vocals almost lost in the mix, especially when you are trying to understand what she is singing about.

My favourite song after two listens is Tonight with genuinely nice melancholic vocals. I liked the relentless drum sound on Summer. At times some of the music sounded almost like a movie soundtrack to me. Chance is a nice song to end the album with. Angel’s voice has a kind of 60’s pop sound on this song, especially on the third verse. I think her new album revisits a lot of these songs in an acoustic fashion. That might be a good idea because at times I felt there was too much going on to take it all in. Having said that, I might grow to love this album in time as I get more familiar with it. I will let you know if I do.

Me & Angel Olsen.