Joanna Newsom - Ys

mp3: Cosmia
website: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joanna_Newsom

Ah, Joanna. How I used to hate you so.

Completely seriously, the sound of Joanna Newsom’s voice on her previous album The Milk-Eyed Mender was enough to induce vomiting in the world of Stayfun. It was pretty impossible to sit on the fence regarding it. I know many loved the sound of her, but to me it was the most atrocious singing voice in the world. Which makes the inclusion of Joanna Newsom in my top three so very impressive. In fact, it could have been number two. If I was bolder it could even be number one. In the end, I settled on three, partly because of my previous experiences, and partly with the fact that the album came to me so late in the year—really just during the last six weeks.

That said, I’ve listened to Ys over and over and over. Rarely a lengthy train journey passes where it doesn’t get brought out. I know that it’ll take me all the way from Rotterdam Lombardijen to just outside Haarlem. Or if I get an international train from Rotterdam Centraal, it’ll ease me right into Amsterdam Centraal. Which is irrelevant to the reader, but it’s my personal experience.

It’s just such a wonderfully complete album, and it is near perfect. Fantastic lyricism, intelligent composition, amazing orchestral arrangements, and a much tamer but also totally enrapturing vocal performance. I just love it. So much so that I’d even want to go see her live now. Plus I continue to gain something new from it on every listen. Sometimes I focus solely on the lyrics, sometimes I’m locked right into the music. It’s ever-changing and new favourite segments keep jumping out at me.

I originally commissioned Dermot (other Stayfun writer) to write about Ys last month, and he did it much more succinctly. But to be fair, he was recycling many of my own ideas as I completely fell for it about two weeks before him and enticed him to follow suit. Anyway, I’ve chosen to share closing track ‘Cosmia’, simply because it’s so pretty.

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