Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Megan's Top 70 of 2010: #30 - Women

Why I Decree it to Be So:

I'm still hoping (i.e. deluding myself) that the disintegration of Women as a band is a mere hiccup, but on the slight chance that it's a little more permanent, well, at least they went out with one hell of a bang. Public Strain is absolutely golden, a hotbed of dissonant dreams and unexpected beauty. It's a record that shows tremendous musical growth, and even more tremendous awesomeness. Opener "Can't You See" puts typical Women-esque dissonant discordance against Velvet Underground-inspired strings for a perfect introduction to what else lies in store. "China Steps" is a favorite of mine, with the sinister repetition of drummery as well as in the severity of the guitar. It's almost violent in its' aggression at times, and damned if it's not one of my favorite songs of the year. The whole record, really, is a jaw-droppingly jarring jangle, a crack'd looking glass of 60s psych, perfect pop nuggets, and even some good old fashioned noise rock thrown in for shits and giggles. Squeamish folk might want to look elsewhere, because Public Strain bares its' teeth early and often. But for those of us who dig that kinda thing, well, this record's a welcome treat.

mp3: China Steps (Women from Public Strain)

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