In Devotion, Beach House have created as profound an invocation of the sacred and the sentimental as you’re ever likely to hear.
Indeed, no one should complain if Devotion turns out to be the best of Beach House, but few will be surprised if they continue to get even better.
Baltimore is as musically diverse as anywhere else, but in 2008, indie rockers associate the city with colorful, energetic music, from the expatriated Animal Collective to Dan Deacon's Wham City crew. The music of Beach House, the Baltimore-based duo of multi-instrumentalist Alex Scally and vocalist/organist Victoria Legrand, is a shadow narrative running parallel to this trend: Their delicate, lovelorn pop comes in the form of deathly waltzes and dark pastoral dirge
s on which Legrand sings about desire, loss, and dreams as if telling a ghost story, splitting the difference between lovely and creepy.
Devotion's half-submerged, half-weightless ambience feels like a shaky yet sure transition into something even more abstract and fragile.
Like Beach House, Devotion sounds like it was made for, and possibly in, the dead of night. This time, though, Beach House's dark moods have more shades, and even a little bit of light, making them all the more compelling.
The lo-fi arrangements on their second full-length, Devotion — a faint organ riff here, a distant chime there, a mournful chant floating above it all — smartly tease the border between ”pretty” and ”eerie.”
If their debut was an autumn trip to the family summer home, Devotion is an overnight springtime visit to open up some windows and let the place air out. We still feel sad, but after a year of aural catharsis, it’s time to move on.
The problem with sleepy pop is that it can make your eyelids seal; ‘Devotion’ becomes hypnotic – even vaguely sinister with its fairground dips and dives.
On Devotion, slow-motion organ washes over precisely twanged guitar while Legrand slides sensuously accented phonemes through the hazy mix.
For some, Devotion might do more harm than good to the average listener. Hell, you could probably fall asleep at the wheel listening to it. Regardless, it’s a great assortment of pop songs under the perfect nomenclature: dreamy.
In all, Devotion teems with as many moments of ethereal beauty as the debut.
To its credit, Devotion is a delicate, often gorgeous listen that flows remarkably well, though I can’t help but attribute its coherence to the utter lack of variation among its eleven songs.
Disappointingly, Devotion feels like a step backwards, Beach House erasing what had made them special.
Not unlike recent tourmates The Clientele, the Baltimore duo’s second LP, Devotion, opts for hushed, plaintive pieces that wash seamlessly into one another.
My devotion to this band has only increased
As the final album I needed to listen to for completing my Beach House journey, I want to say that I truly love this band. They do something special for me. They are a group I have had some really great experiences with, and they have got me through some tough times. I'm very thankful for their music. Now as for this album, this is definitely an improvement from the debut. Through the first half I was getting a bit worried because it was pleasant, ... read more
(Band Binge: Beach House Part Two of Eight)
...Am I missing something here?
Look, this album isn't bad. It's far from it actually. It's sweet, wholesome, delicate, the songwriting is on point and the production is dense and off the wall. And compared to their debut, there is definite improvement. But...goddamn I was just bored to tears. I had to chuck on Devo halfway through listening just to bring me back to life!
I think i'm just the wrong guy to be looking at this group in depth. Everyone ... read more
The overall sound goes for a much more dreamy sound than their self-titled debut, however this album yet again can feel a bit repetitive and derivative. But from what I've heard in their later stuff so far, I know they're still working on perfecting their new dream pop sound.
favourite tracks: Wedding Bell, You Came To Me, Holy Dances, All The Years, Heart Of Chambers, D.A.R.L.I.N.G
least favourite: Turtle Island
Summary: Good
1 | Wedding Bell 3:54 | 81 |
2 | You Came To Me 4:05 | 80 |
3 | Gila 4:46 | 84 |
4 | Turtle Island 3:59 | 78 |
5 | Holy Dances 4:18 | 76 |
6 | All the Years 3:36 | 72 |
7 | Heart of Chambers 4:25 | 84 |
8 | Some Things Last a Long Time 2:31 | 71 |
9 | Astronaut 5:04 | 79 |
10 | D.A.R.L.I.N.G. 3:18 | 78 |
11 | Home Again 4:08 | 78 |
#6 | / | Tiny Mix Tapes |
#9 | / | Treble |
#27 | / | No Ripcord |
#30 | / | A.V. Club |
#46 | / | Pitchfork |