bethanye92: Dynamite by Stina Nordenstam

For a long time this was the only Stina album that hadn't clicked with me at all - super frustrating as I really felt this should have worked on paper (that exquisitely delicate, child-like voice singing about violence and desire over a backdrop of sparse slowcore/industrial noise - wonderful!) but I always felt like there was something lacking - not sure why but thankfully my brain filled the gap this year and now I keep going back to it and being thrilled in different ways each listen. Top picks are Almost a Smile ('like the presence of a stranger/when you live in constant danger/almost a smile'), Down Desire Avenue ('men judging balance above all/looking down on their shaking hands') and CQD ('send me out blindfolded/watch me take up the glove/this is what I have been trained for/I think I am in love'). Still not really on board with the child murder songs (not against writing songs on this topic generally, but the examples here are somewhat lacking in sensitivity and even artistry which makes me question their necessity - compare for example the Perfume Genius Mary Bell-inspired track with the one on here), and there isn't anything as great as Viewed from the Spire or Little Star, but this is a much more solid and fleshed-out album than it sounds on the first few listens, and certainly warrants/rewards repeated listening.

Dynamite

1996