PJ Harvey, to a certain breed she’s one of the most interesting and relevant artists recording. To others she’s the girl that sounds like Kate Bush and used to go out with Nick Cave. I’m with the former and for all my flaws and bad habits, this is one gene, the Polly gene, I hope I pass on, because PJ Harvey is brilliant and so is her new album.
Let England Shake is similar to previous Harvey albums only in that it is vastly different to everything that went before it. What it does share with her Mercury Prize winning Stories From The City is its complete albumness. It is interesting, engrossing and accessible from start to finish.
As the title suggests, England and the singer’s relationship with her is the album’s theme. But this is no patriotic love letter, more a beautifully written intellectual study of place that Sufjan Stevens would be proud of. If you’re unfamiliar with his work, listen to his paean to Chicago here.
As I have done with all her albums, I approached Let England Shake with a willingness to give it a few listens before it clicked, but with this, as with all her best work, I loved on first listen. Harvey’s incisive and interesting writing and voice finds a sharp and memorable melody on every track and the result is just brilliant.
An album full of tunes to love on all levels for years and years.
Stand out tracks for me include the title track and Dark Places
