Vestiges & Claws

José González

Vestiges & Claws
Format
Audio
Published
20 February 2015
ISBN
5021456204670

Vestiges & Claws

José González

Since releasing In Our Nature in 2007, José González has been steadily collecting riffs and ideas for new songs.

An album consisting of seven years’ worth of musical sketches might naturally sprawl wildly in production and style, but on Vestiges & Claws González has created a collection of songs that cohere just about perfectly. It travels from the glowering, riff-driven ‘Stories We Build, Stories We Tell’ via the groovy ‘Leaf Off / The Cave’ to the anthemic ‘Every Age’. For those familiar with José’s earlier work there is little doubt as to who is behind these recordings.

“I started out thinking that I wanted to continue in the same minimalistic style as on my two previous records,” says José. “But once I started the actual recordings I soon realized that most of the songs turned out better with added guitars and a more beat-like percussion, and with more backing vocals. Personally, I think this made it a more interesting and varied album.”

The result is less purist, less strict. One can find traces of inspired protest songs and eccentric folk rock here. Monotonous grooves and rhythms. Frustration and optimism. It’s a collection that is simultaneously confident, free and tentative.

Like José González’s previous releases, Vestiges & Claws was largely recorded in his home kitchen and partly in Svenska Grammofonstudion, both in Gothenburg. Chirping birds, creaking doors and off-mic chattering can be heard intruding upon the recordings. José is careful to avoid editing out these imperfections - he wants you to feel the intimacy of the setting.

Where José’s previous albums, Veneer and In Our Nature, might have sounded sparse and barren in parts, Vestiges & Claws has an altogether new feeling to it, at once warmer and darker than before. He talks about how he’s found inspiration in sprawling 70’s Brazilian productions, American folk rock and West African desert blues this time. And how he’s decided to waive the principle of having everything on the album reproducible in a live context.

“I’ve focused more on the role of being a producer this time around, I’ve spent more time thinking of what’s best for the song and the recording,” finishes José.

Track listing:

  1. With the Ink of a Ghost

  2. Let It Carry You

  3. Stories We Build, Stories We Tell

  4. The Forest

  5. Leap Off / The Cave

  6. Every Age

  7. What Will

  8. Vissel

  9. Afterglow

  10. Open Book

 

Review

Indie folk singer–songwriter and guitarist José González’s dulcet tones first drifted over me in the back of Readings Carlton in 2007 as he was performing a few beautiful songs from his then recently released album, In Our Nature. González has since recorded two studio albums with his band, Junip, and contributed to the soundtrack for The Secret Life of Walter Mitty directed by and starring Ben Stiller. Vestiges & Claws is González’s first solo album since 2007 and was self-produced in his homeland, Sweden.

His new album marks a shift from the renowned minimalist sound of his previous albums and is the first of his albums to contain all original songs. As brilliant as they were, I used to have a slight issue with the fact that Gonález was best known for his popular covers including The Knife’s ‘Heartbeats’, Kylie Minogue’s ‘Hand on Your Heart’ and Joy Division’s ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’.

I’m relieved that he’s now found his own voice, creating what is a beautiful album that includes a vibrant mix of mild protest songs of frustration, moving through to peace and optimism. This collection of eccentric folk rock, staccato grooves and rhythms is the perfect accompaniment to a blissful sunny afternoon.


Emily Harms

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