Warpaint – ‘Warpaint’
Warpaint’s self-titled second album follows their acclaimed debut The Fool and was produced by Flood and Nigel Godrich, so it’s got a pretty good shot, don’t you think? Combine this team of greats with Warpaint‘s desire to experiment with new sounds and create their most personal piece of work to date, and the odds continue to climb up in their favour. As well as this album, a documentary by Chris Cunningham, filmmaker and husband to Jenny Lee Lindberg, will be released as Cunningham filmed their time making ‘Warpaint’.
Drummer Stella Mozgawa joined Theresa Wayman, Emily Kokal and Jenny Lee Lindberg in 2009, establishing their current line-up, and this album was the first chance for them to work together from the beginning to the final product, and this particular final product packs a punch, even more so than its predecessor. It has attitude, and it’s sexy, which is exactly what they intended but not in a brash, thrusting, pour-some-sugar-on-me kind of way, just subtly in the feeling of the music. Warpaint has found this perfect destination of alluring, dark and beautiful.
Admittedly ever so slightly less subtle in ‘Disco/Very’, as they sing “, We’ll rip you up and tear you in two”. This song is, without doubt, an album highlight, though, with its underground bass-filled goodness. This track also manages to be the most fun and one that I would absolutely request to hear on a night out.
Other highlights would include their previously released single ‘Love Is To Die’, which is perfect for swaying and dancing and getting lost. It’s a great taster for the rest of the album as it combines the dream-like ambience with the darker side of their sound. On the other hand, ‘Drive’ starts slowly and peacefully, and the way that they build the song up to its climax with percussion and harmonies is utterly encapsulating and consuming.
‘Warpaint’ can be described as having that hazy shoe gaze dream pop quality, for sure. They have built this image of a smoky room in a busy city, and they’re at the back, somewhere. So how, then, can this be the personal album that they wanted it to be if they are hidden behind the ambient electronic beats? Well, let me tell you that they can truly be heard. Their voice, their attitude, it all bursts through the smoke, making this album stand out from the sea of bands of their like, who are probably trying to do exactly what they have done but failing. They are leaps and bounds ahead.
