'Pretty' might sound like a rather nondescript, wishy-washy choice of adjective for describing an album, but it's entirely appropriate for The Portraits' second release, 'The Blushing of a World in White,' and it's by no means a negative thing.
The Portraits are clearly a band - technically a duo, assisted by a veritable army of guest players and singers - for whom art is not a dirty word. Perhaps this isn't entirely surprising, given their backgrounds as music and art tutors - jobs they abandoned to follow their dreams of making music as The Portraits.
A folk album at its foundations, 'The Blushing in a World of White' incorporates - subtly - a range of inspirations from all corners of the globe. To describe the sound as world-folk would be entirely fitting. 'Undo' features a spoken word narrative and bongo percussion; there's a chopstick-type motif on 'Liberty', and it's all executed with perfect and admirable deftness. Lyrically, the words of Jeremy and Lorraine Millington are considered and eloquent, reading as poetry (although I'd question the need to include the 'ah ho, ha oh' parts on the lyric sheet).
|
While some tracks, such as the bilingual 'Strong Cien Secretos', feel a little too extravagantly muso - such smooth jazz-infused grooves always rub me the wrong way - 'The Blushing of a World in White' will definitely appeal to the 'discerning' listener. It's not one for 'the kids.' As a whole, 'The Blushing of a World in White' is an album that is poised and delicate, meticulous and melodious. Nice.
The Portraits on MySpace
|
