JACOB FAURHOLT - Super Glue

Jacob Faurholt - Super Glue

10 songs
34:39 minutes
***** ****
DME

Bandpage

According to the info sheet that came with the promo package, Super Glue is the first proper studio recording by Jacob Faurholt, a Danish indie / lo-fi artist who alternately releases music under his own name and under the moniker Crystal Shipsss, an alter ego which allows him to dabble in more experimental music. His last solo album Corners came out about two years ago and was a really exceptionally great piece of indie music. Half a year ago this was contrasted by a truly grating yet strangely appealing record by Crystal Shipsss.

If you expect his sixth solo album Super Glue to be a simple follow-up to Corners, you are mistaken. Super Glue is a break-up album, dealing with the feelings and emotions that come with a shattered relationship, and as such, it is of course a very moody affair. Jacob Faurholt was assisted by Sleep Party People’s Brian Batz who was in charge of production and also performed on all ten tracks. If Jacob Faurholt comes sometimes across as a Danish Daniel Johnston, one might assume that Brian Batz is his Mark Linkous. And in some ways that makes sense, with Batz quietly polishing Faurholt’s music, respecting the songs’ fragility yet adding a touch here and there that furthermore enhance their beauty. Fortunately Batz’s handling of things comes across more discreet than what Mark Linkous did to Daniel Johnston’s slightly über-produced Fear Yourself.

Super Glue starts with Floating In Space, a kind of dirge in 3/4 time which through means of repetition creates a hypnotic atmosphere that make this track seem shorter than its five minutes. Simple yet alluring. The catchy title track Super Glue is the most upbeat song on the album, coming with a crunchy noise rock flair and an organ delivering a chord carpet discreetly in the background. Guided By Voices was released already on the EP Geek Love Is The Best Love in 2012. The newly recorded version is more serene and still makes me smile with all its references to the song and album titles of the Dayton, Ohio lo-fi pioneers. On Top is one of the album’s very quiet tracks, whose chorus feels really haunting due to some nice tape delay effects. The following Holy Mother may not even be two minutes long and shows Jacob Faurholt’s love for drone music, something he usually professes with Crystal Shipsss.

After an excellent first half, we get a nearly as enjoyable second one. Future Wife is the album’s first single and has an alt country feeling, probably a nod to the Lemonheads. Pictures Of You also comes with a strong country feeling, without the pop appeal this time around though, making this another of Jacob Faurholt’s bare ballads. And maybe this is where the album has decided to become really mellow. Not that this is a problem, as Jacob Faurholt is really great at writing moving ballads. Stars comes for instance with an unforgettable chorus that will have you sing along, no matter if you want to or not. The final two tracks Sad World and One Last Goodbye are slightly longer pieces, with the former once again taking advantage of the wonderful production (nice cranky old mellotron strings on this one), and the latter’s second half letting in the beat again, thus concluding the album on a note of hope.

While Super Glue’s production may be slightly smarter than that of Corners, it also feels more melancholy and thus a little less catchy. It’s still a great piece of music, maybe not the longest album, but Super Glue eventually doesn’t need any more minutes to convey its message. Brian Batz’s discreet touches of keyboards and mellotrons, plus the occasional female backing vocals, add even more depth to Jacob Faurholt’s already very deep going music. Fans of lo-fi will have a grand time with this once again very rewarding album, even if it takes a couple of listening sessions before it has revealed all of its charms.

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