October 7, 2011

Album Review: Still Corners - 'Creatures Of An Hour'

A record that finds intimacy in minimalism

Album Info

Release Date: October 10, 2011
Producer: Greg Hughes
Label: Sub Pop
Fact: The band draw upon European cinema for inspiration

8 / 10 Still Corners are a band of great beauty; live, the London group surround themselves in dimly lit, elegant cascades of projected white light. But transferring their aesthetic to record, they’ve created a world far beyond their monochrome-tinged performances. Guitars trail delicately over weaving synths, while Tessa Murray’s silky vocals wrap everything in a dreamy kiss. It’s so indulgently seductive it could easily soundtrack a Marks & Spencer advert. On ‘The Winter Season’, she leans in and coos, “Softly, softer snow, whisper all you know” – it’s less sung, more exhaled, lingering like warm breath in frosty air. ‘Creatures Of An Hour’ is a record that finds intimacy in minimalism, and lets the space in the music buildto an atmosphere almost as crushing as the audible moments. ‘Endless Summer’ drifts into hazy oblivion, while ‘Submarine’ closes the album, its momentum building as the beast in Still Corners screams through the speakers and rips out our beating hearts.

Jen Long

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Average rating

8.6

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