Fancy Cate Le Bon not disappointing. One of the most interesting musicians of recent years is back, with her sixth album Pompeii, and she marks out fresh territory for herself, albeit firmly in the art tradition she's established for herself with the previous five.
For Le Born is first and foremost about art. Bowie of course is always a very prominent star in her sky, but on Pompeii I was reminded first and foremost of Roxy Music and their impact on bands and musicians that followed. Japan, Simple Minds and to my ears Le Bon herself.
The record unwinds with the gorgeous cplourful twists and turns and angular grace of classic Eighties albums like Gentlemen Take Polaroids, Tim Drum, Sons & Fascination and New Gold Dream. Apparently written in almost total seclusion in a studio in the Lake District, and recorded with minimal support, the way the record sounds is a considerable tribute to both Le Bon, and modern production values. She sounds throughout as if she has a formidable band at her back.
Isolation is a running theme of the songs, as are the images that Le Bon has chosen of herself to market the album, of her variously as a statue, a nun (or is she a matron nurse?), or some odd, coccooned, caterpillar creature. The imagery is often obscure with her but here quite accessible too, given emotional and critical engagement on the part of the listener, and it's all (given some of the rather bleak lyrical preoccupations), surprisingly warm and consoling.
I've loved almost everything I've heard from Le Bon over the years. I constantly wonder, given that she has such specific qualities and personal characteristics, that a new record will disappoint or repeat what she's done previously, but she and they never do. I'm not sure where exactly Pompeii, stands in her back catalogue, but it's certainly a magnificent record.
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