Essential Albums - 23

 

Artist/Band: Blonde Redhead

Genre: Dream Pop, Shoegaze

Label: 4AD

Year: 2007

23 is Blonde Redhead's most popular (relatively) album to date, but I think it's also their best one.

About 

23 is the seventh studio album by Blonde Redhead released in 2007 following their critically acclaimed 2004 album Misery Is A Butterfly. Blonde Redhead is a three-piece with Kazu Makino on vocals and synth, and brothers Simone and Amedeo Pace on drums and guitars respectively. Blonde Redhead is one of those bands who

should receive more attention outside the indie scene. They are also one of the only bands who I think have a perfect discography. Even among their stellar discography and between critically acclaimed albums like Misery Is A Butterfly and Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons their 2003 album 23 should be talked about more. It is the perfect amalgamation of well-arranged instrumentation, aggression, and emotionally hitting yet little nerdy in lyrical content. Blonde Redhead does not bring the signature garage rock and no wave inspired riffs and lo-fi song construction and relies on sweet dream-pop sounds making this their most accessible record. However, the experimentation is there just very subtle, they bring in some experimental and angular guitar passages and very slick synths and electronics. The band recorded this with a simplistic view of creating individual songs, it is the production and mixing ( aided by Alan Moulder of MBV fame) brings all the tracks together for a cohesive listen. The number 23 named after enigma 23 as the number associated with change is a fitting name as the band transitions into a new sonic territory. 

Music 

The album opens with the title track 23 and it perfect opener for the album the lyrics deal with 23 enigma which deals with changes that a person can do good and bad in 23 seconds. There are several tracks which deal with changes and sort of ties the album together as a loose concept record. Musically this song is a pretty seamless blend of dream-pop and shoegaze with a pinch of ambient thrown in. The chorus chord change and the subsequent riff is heavenly and Kazu 

Makino's vocals just beam in creating a euphoric atmosphere. The second song Dr. Strangluv is the best song in the album with lyrics loosely relating to the movie Dr. Strangelove movie about the atomic bomb and the lyrics deal with love-hate relations with people and how misanthropic views change your perception and empathetic ties. Musically it is very somber with this very disorienting random spatial chimes/hi-hats, the percussion is very cool in this song with so many sounds buried in the mix giving this song immense repeatability. The Dress is the next song which is a classic dream pop song with a very slow verse then these shimmering guitars come into the chorus, the most interesting part of this song is how it uses space to create these dramatic parts, perfectly highlighting the lyrical reference. The next two tracks SW and Spring and By Summer Fall are more on the lane of Blonde Redhead's previous output with them playing it safe but boy it is executed and PRODUCED perfectly. Next track Silently is a very stark change of aesthetic, beginning with this very cheery beat, but lyrically it deals with the pain of one-sided unrequited love. Additionally, the vocal arrangement that overlaps on the chorus is just gorgeous. The publisher is the first song on 23 to feature vocals by Pace and sets a dark tone with bass-heavy pianos and again demonstrating a beautiful use of space to take the minimal verse instrumental to something more intricate. Heroine is about a friend's death and judging by the title possibly through drug overdose, the song musically is very hypnotic with a hint of eastern musical influence thrown in. The penultimate song Top Ranking, a very nice Indie Pop song with a catchy melody and intricate instrumentation. The album closer is again a somber dream pop song with this spacy production, which ends with a weird drum section. Overall, this is a very nice closer to this very dreamlike and ethereal album.

Final Thoughts

Blonde Redhead's sound change definitely paid off, 23 is their most successful album, and it deserves it and much more. Musically it is one of the best dream-pop albums I have heard, the production is immaculate with little details in the intricate instrumentation you notice every time you listen to it. Even though Blonde Redhead dials back the experimentation a bit on this album (relatively), it executes each song very well. The album is definitely the one I recommend to someone who is new to Blonde Redhead as a perfect entry to the diverse and PERFECT discography of this band.