November

Sometimes being immersed in melancholy can be irresistible, there s the deep pull of lingering in a state of wistful romantic sorrow. The music of Azure Ray acts as a blanket, enveloping the listener in the comforts of the sad and the beautiful. Formerly of ecstatic popsters Little Red Rocket, Orenda Fink and Maria Taylor have eschewed volume for a softness that is stunning in its fragility and intensity. Hinting at feathery 4AD output, Azure Ray fortify their lonely-heart sounds with songwriting that builds upon the already potent atmospherics. The vocals are whispery and fluid, accompanied by piano, cello, guitar, and bowed bass. Surprises abound as well, a left-field cover of country great Townes Van Zandt s For the Sake of the Song is incredibly poignant, and on No Signs of Pain there is an edgy tension, heightened by steel-drum clanging and tribal percussion. Closing with the near gospel of Other Than This World, one is left feeling uplifted and cuddled by this warm and sensual record. --Andy Waltzer