Jenny Hval - Blood Bitch (Sacred Bones Records) 2016
9
“What’s this album about, Jenny?” “It’s about vampires.” Blood, lunar cycles, sticky choruses, and the smell of warm leaves and winter – these are Jenny Hval’s Blood Bitch inspirations. Black metal undertones are masked by her hauntingly pure voice and dreamy synths, but certainly exist somewhere beneath. As spoken recordings move to echoing vocals, Hval is like Poe or Lovecraft; her beautiful language and story are punctuated with an ever-present lurking darkness. In a masterful way, Blood Bitch links her personal tale with a landscape of sounds that allude to 70s horror. At any moment, a transcendent image could suddenly collapse into a realm of John Carpenter’s creation. Hval’s Nordic roots are evident as this edifice of sincere beauty sways upon its uncertain, shifting foundation.