Beach House - Depression Cherry (2015)

*Beach House - Depression Cherry (2015)*

Rating: 14

"Chances are like night disappeared,"

Best Song: 10:37 or Levitation, maybe?

Worst Song: I have no idea again

Song List:

1. Levitation

2. Sparks

3. Space Song

4. Beyond Love

5. 10:37

6. PPP

7. Wildflower

8. Bluebird

9. Days of Candy

Continuing on with the reviewing of Beach House's Discography, we retreat back just a couple of months ago, to when this album released was near the end of August. I was walking around my local record store, browsing the vinyls of bands like  Rush and Brian Eno, when a song came on the overly loud speakers of the store. A soft chord began on a keyboard, and as it was held, other keyboards began to layer it in beautiful and melodic ways. Then the drum machine began playing softly and a gorgeously ethereal voice began singing "You, and me, with our long hair on the gold wall," I just stopped what I was doing and listened in shock as this amazing song played on and on until it prettily faded out. After it was finished and the next song began, I walked up to the cashier and asked him "What band was that?!" He just looked at me like I was an idiot and said, "It's Beach House, man. Their new album just came out."

About an hour later, I held the beautifully clear "Loser Edition Vinyl" of Beach House's newest album, Depression Cherry. I listened to the album from start to finish a couple times that day alone, and my god, was I in love. This was a band at its peak playing to its strengths and making some gloriously music. Other reviews pinned it as lazy, and it seemed quite divisive overall, but I knew where I stood. I couldn't get enough of this album, and even as I bought Bloom, Teen Dream, and recently Thank Your Lucky Stars, I kept flocking back to this album. It captured some kind of feeling that the others just can't. To be honest, that's what makes Beach House so great. One major complaint that they always get is that every album sounds the same, but after a couple listens, that obviously isn't true. Beach House has this power to tap into emotions that may sound similar at first, but reveal their depth and differences with time. Depression Cherry does this impeccably, by making the jumpy feeling of Bloom toned down and more relaxed.

Listening to this album in order of songs as an album is a must. There is no way to more fully enjoy the songs than to just experience the songs in the order intended by the band itself. This may seem like an obvious fact restated, but in a world where many people have an ipod with 3000 songs, and 2500 albums on their ipod, the flow of albums are being more forgotten about than ever. This album blossoms when listen to in its entirety, and the way that the album calms down through its modest running time almost makes it feel like the day ending and the night beginning. If Bloom is a hazy summer day, then Depression  Cherry is a cool autumn evening. Thank Your Lucky Stars is the middle of the night, if we were to continue on with that comparison, but it's so different from the other two that such a comparison is almost meaningless.

I don't really enjoy track by track reviews, but the flow of this album must be mentioned. The album starts out with the amazing "Levitation," A dreamy reminiscing of days gone by and wishes not fulfilled, before crashing into the noisy, yet chilled out "Sparks,". Sparks almost fades into "Space Song," A song as floaty and beautiful as it sounds. By the time "Beyond Love" comes on, you're overtaken in this world of pretty sounds, and as side one ends, you are given a breather, almost to signify time passing. By the time you flip your vinyl record (or just wait a few seconds),  the night begins to fade in with the fantastic "10:37" which is my possibly favorite Beach House song, and it is followed up by the magnificent "PPP," Which floats like a cloud. Then, the lo-fi "Wildflower" sends you off to another world, as "Bluebird" and "Days of Candy" return you to your world, and after the otherworldly choruses of "Days" ends, you're left in a calm world of beautiful silence. It's a truly remarkable experience...

Overall, I would say get this album right now. Beach House doesn't have a bad song on here, and the whole album is a beautiful listening experience and one that has to be heard to be believed. It's my personal favorite album by them, and a must-buy for anyone who even has a passing interest in dreamy or alternative music.

You can listen to a Youtube stream of the album for free by clicking on this link!