Elena Setién - Another Kind Of Revolution
by Adrian P
published: 26 / 3 / 2019
Label:
Thrill Jockey
Format: CD
intro
On her first album for Thrill Jockey - but third in all – Spain’s Elena Setién carves out lustrous arrangements around her elegant compositions
Very much an internationalist concern, the Spanish-born Elena Setién makes a virtue of both her cultural heritage and global associations on this third LP. Although not your most typical new addition to the Thrill Jockey roster, Setién is certainly a charismatic and skilled songcrafter who broadens the long-running label’s range even further. Lyrically inspired but not weighted-down by her time growing-up amongst the political upheavals of Spain’s Basque region in the post-Franco 1980s, this new album is built with lush and layered organic structures. Featuring her own multi-instrumentalist turns on piano, Wurlitzer, violin, drums and percussion augmented by guest spots from Steve Gunn (guitar), Andreas Fuglebæck (guitar) and Mikel Azpiroz (synth), this is a collection that wins heavily on its arrangements before you even get to Setién’s smouldering tones and the intelligent wordplay baked within. It’s a trip that takes a variety of routes without getting too tangled in its multiple-trajectories. The most immediately ear-catching pieces - 'The Wheel That Drives You', 'Down The Meadow', 'Far From The Madding Crowd' and the title-track - come attractively forged in warm cosmopolitan baroque opulence. Elsewhere, spectral Laurie Anderson minimalism is invoked on the inner-space oddities of 'Window One' and 'Window Two (For Sigurd And Albert)'; music box-like pirouetting drives along 'Sail Down The River'; the terrific twang and prowl of 'Old Jamie'cross-references Tarnation’s marvellous Mirador; and 'She Was So Fair' closes proceedings with languid Mazzy Star-meets-Marissa Nadler foggy expansiveness. Esoteric yet inviting and ambitious but intimate, this is an impressive – and no doubt for many belated– introduction to the world of Elena Setién, which will undoubtedly unfurl even more of its internal mysteries on each additional airing.
Track Listing:-
1 The Wheel That Drives You2 Another Kind Of Revolution
3 Window One
4 Sail Down The River
5 Old Jamie
6 Down The Meadow
7 Far From The Madding Crowd
8 We See You Shining For A While
9 Window Two (For Sigurd And Albert)
10 She Was So Fair
Label Links:-
http://www.thrilljockey.com/https://www.facebook.com/ThrillJockey
https://twitter.com/thrilljockey
most viewed articles
current edition
Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies - Sala Apolo, Barcelona, 29/11/2023 and La Paqui, Madrid, 30/11/2023Anthony Phillips - Interview
Difford and Tilbrook - Difford and Tilbrook
Rain Parade - Interview
Oldfield Youth Club - Interview
Autumn 1904 - Interview
Shaw's Trailer Park - Interview
Cafe No. 9, Sheffield and Grass Roots Venues - Comment
Pete Berwick - ‘Too Wild to Tame’: The story of the Boyzz:
Chris Hludzik - Vinyl Stories
most viewed reviews
current edition
Marika Hackman - Big SighSerious Sam Barrett - A Drop of the Morning Dew
Rod Stewart and Jools Holland - Swing Fever
Ian M Bailey - We Live in Strange Times
Loves - True Love: The Most of The Loves
Paul McCartney and Wings - Band on the Run
Autumn 1904 - Tales of Innocence
Roberta Flack - Lost Takes
Banter - Heroes
Posey Hill - No Clear Place to Fall
Pennyblackmusic Regular Contributors
Adrian Janes
Amanda J. Window
Andrew Twambley
Anthony Dhanendran
Benjamin Howarth
Cila Warncke
Daniel Cressey
Darren Aston
Dastardly
Dave Goodwin
Denzil Watson
Dominic B. Simpson
Eoghan Lyng
Fiona Hutchings
Harry Sherriff
Helen Tipping
Jamie Rowland
John Clarkson
Julie Cruickshank
Kimberly Bright
Lisa Torem
Maarten Schiethart