HYPNO MAGAZINE

YEAR AFTER YEAR - Caroline Records

In the film Strangers When We Meet, Kin Novak falls info an affair with the architect, Kirk Douglas, who is building her husband’s house. She is so unsure of herself, so neurotic. “Do I want to?” “Maybe I shouldn’t,” “Why not?” “What’s it matter anyway?” She is so tortured by the various forces pushing and pulling at her. And so sad. The mood created by her powerful performance is not unlike the mood created by this album. Jeff Martin’s vocals are so tenuous, so aimless, yet an unerring sense of ennui pervades.

Comparisons with other merchants of melancholy fit. Some MORRISSEY. Or better, JOY DIVISION’s Ian Curtis. Still, for a closer comparison you might have to go back to NICO’s doleful masterpiece, CHELSEA GIRLS. It shares an acoustic feel with that record, altho, some dissonant feedback is variously inserted, most effectively on the song Skyscrape. When depressed, I think there can be some comfort in the resignation brot on by listening to sad music. This is a powerful, haunting, and beautiful work.

James Call