Album Name: Conical Monocle
Artist: Pretty Balanced
Year/Label: 2007 / Independent
Review by Anna Maria Stjärnell
Pretty Balanced make an album that is anything but.
Singer Judith Shimer intones demurely on opener Halogen Lamps while odd noises buzz in and out. It’s like an eighties synth pop song having a nervous breakdown.
Sanctuary is placid and bubbly and still somehow serene. Shimer sings in an alluring whisper as the lovely track unfurls.
12 is a little bit cabaret-ish and all the better for it. Shimer sings a tale of youthful disappointment with verve.
Weird Men is an almost straightforward piano song, so I love it. The lyrics are slightly scary and Shimer sings beautifully.
Pretty Balanced dart between seemingly normal songs and complete weirdness with practiced ease. It makes the album a real treat.
Track Listing
Listen to track samples
1 Halogen Lamps
2 Amtrax
3 Sanctuary
4 The Skin
5 Station Waggin
6 12
7 Pieces
8 Weird Men
9 Fall Asleep for Nuclear War1
0 Acid In[di]gestion Pt. 1
11 Acid In[di]gestion Pt. 2
12 Gas Flame
13 Fear of Dying
14 Jazz
15 Seizure Dome
[Pretty Balanced Official Site]
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