Penny Sparkle

Blonde Redhead | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 14, 2010)
• Original Release Date: 2010
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: 4ad Records
• ASIN: B003UDBSVO
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,911 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Here Sometimes

2. Not Getting There

3. Will There Be Stars

4. My Plants Are Dead

5. Love Or Prison

6. Oslo

7. Penny Sparkle

8. Everything Is Wrong

9. Black Guitar

10. Spain

Editorial Reviews

To be released on September 14th, Penny Sparkle the band's third album for 4AD - marks another sonic twist in their already adventurous canon. It was made over the last year with the band journeying between New York and Stockholm to work with production duo Van Rivers and The Subliminal Kid (Fever Ray, Massive Attack) and as with their previous album, 23, Alan Moulder (Depeche Mode, My Bloody Valentine, Yeah Yeah Yeahs) was enlisted to mix it.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Not their best, but still quite good September 16, 2010

By Stefan TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

While I agree with some of the criticism that's been aimed at Penny Sparkle, I also think that there's a lot to like about the album. I'm not going to slam it, but I'm also not calling it a modern classic. In a nutshell, I'd say it's a good album that's nowhere near as good as what they're capable of. Here's what I like and dislike about it:

On the plus side, this really makes a beautiful late-night chill-out album, balancing between dreaminess and melancholy, but leaning more towards the latter (where e.g. their previous album "23" is more dreamy). The production is excellent, with a lot of silence allowed to stay in the songs, giving the album a similar feel to e.g. The Cure's Seventeen Seconds and Thom Yorke's solo album, which both seem to play as much with the silence between the instruments as with the actual music. (And before people start howling: yes, I realize those two albums are very different from Penny Sparkle in other respects, and I'm not making value-judgments about them here - just pointing out a similar, spare, melancholy atmosphere - another one is "100th Window" by Massive Attack, now I think of it). The beats somehow sound at the same time crisp and muted, and Kazu's vocals are lovely as ever. There's also some really gorgeous synth textures floating around in the songs, and a lot of detail that only pops out after you've heard the songs a handful of times. This is one of those albums you'll enjoy more on a good set of headphones.

On the negative - well, unfortunately I feel that the songs, especially in the middle third of the album, at times start to blend into each other a bit too much. The first two tracks are excellent, and there are a few gems to be found later on, but it starts to sound a bit samey-samey as the album winds towards the end.... I also miss the inventive drumming that could be found on some of their prior albums. In my opinion, Simone Pace is one of the most creative drummers of our time (although you really have to see him live to realize how amazing he really is), consistently coming up with original beats, but on Penny Sparkle, he unfortunately doesn't sound like himself.

In the end, I feel that Penny Sparkle is a nice album that's unfortunately not as good as the band's previous 3 releases - Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons (2000), Misery is a Butterfly (2004) and 23 (2007). If you want to know what this band is REALLY capable of, go play the first song from each of those albums, which are all modern classics in my opinion (and just check out "In Particular" from "Lemons" or "Melody" from "Misery is a Butterfly" to see what I was talking about with this amazing drummer). "Penny Sparkle" isn't a bad album by any means, but it just doesn't reach those same heights at any point.

If you love Blonde Redhead, you probably own this album already, and you may feel like me - enjoying it but not really blown away, hoping that a few more listens will make it click for you. If you don't know this band yet, I'd grab one of the other 3 albums I mentioned first (and I bet you'll be back soon, eager for more!) Read more ›

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Blonde Redhead + Van Rivers & the Subliminal Kid = One Amazing Album October 30, 2010

By Jimmy Penola

Format:Audio CD

Album of the Year? Maybe. If not that, certainly the most beautiful. One thing I can say for sure is that Blonde Redhead's latest will undoubtedly make it into my 2010 list of favorites. First and foremost, I'm no authority on the band: I know they've been around for a while and have a ton of albums I have yet to listen to, but their last 2 LPs (2007's "23" and 2004's "Misery Is A Butterfly") were outstanding. As such, I was really looking forward to "Penny Sparkle." Once I found out Van Rivers & The Subliminal Kid produced it - who also took production reigns on Fever Ray's superb debut - I couldn't wait. With that said, I'm happy to report that they transferred all the brilliant synth-tastic nuances of that album over to "Penny Sparkle." The combination of BR's finely honed songwriting with Van Rivers & The Subliminal Kid's detailed studio trickery is a college art student's dream.

Every song, from opener "Here Sometimes" to the goosebump-inducing "Spain" are rich with ethereal melodies, subtle guitar lines, layered percussion, and all manner of electronic magic. The anchor to every track however is singer Kazu Makino. Despite her noticeable accent, Makino's voice strikes an incredible balance between her powerful melodies and extremely delicate vocals. This is apparent on every song she sings on. The 2 tracks where she doesn't take lead, "Will There Be Stars" and "Black Guitar" (sung by guitarist Amedeo Pace) are still excellent - "Black Guitar" in particular, where the two alternate on the verse and chorus, is one of the best on the album: the melancholy mood sounds like some something Lennon or McCartney might've written on one of their darker days.

Similarly, the emotionally stunning "Love Or Prison", the album's centerpiece, leaves quite a lasting impression.... The amount of space in the mix allows every sound and instrument to coalesce beautifully, the wide open feel reflective of the lonely subject matter. Listen to this one in the dark.

Yet, amongst all the amazing tunes, the closer "Spain" would have to be my favorite. The emotional intensity reaches a peak here - it's sad, triumphant, and empowering without ever missing a beat. Few bands can reach into me and settle so comfortably across different feelings, but Blonde Redhead are one of them.

The only song that doesn't stand out to me is the title track. It's not bad by any means but it lacks the memorable instrumentation of everything else on the album. As tempting as it is to review each individual song, just know that the album is perfectly balanced in its running order: it starts strong, stays strong, and ends even stronger.

This album will make your heart cry, but that makes it no less addicting. Read more ›

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars dreamy, atmospheric electronic swirls September 30, 2010

By Charlie Quaker

Format:Audio CD

The 8th album since 1995 from New York indie heroes. The persistent & jagged Sonic Youth
influence in their early releases has given way to a beautifully dreary & atmospheric, electronic
Cocteau Twins/Bjork-ian float. The songs all seem to meld together--indistinguishable from each
other--with a combination of soft, near-jazzy experimentalism that sometimes recalls early Japan,
couched in cautiously hypnotic swirls of post-shoegaze expansionism. It's truly gorgeous, but
ultimately boring, as the stunning production glosses over what feels like a lack of substance and
diversity.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars JUST GIVE IT SOME TIME - AMAZING October 7, 2010

By jilixi

Format:Audio CD

At first I have to admit I was a bit disappointed in this album, just because it's so different from their others and it took a bit of getting used to. But now I can honestly say that it is my favorite BR album.
Penny Sparkle is full of amazingly beautiful tracks with deep, sexy beats, and flowing, luscious vocals, and simply profound lyrics. I freaking love this album. I can listen to it every day. My favorite songs are Black Guitar, Penny Sparkle, Spain, My Plants are Dead, Will Their Be Stars, Oslo. The only track I don't really care for much is Everything Is Wrong... which happens to be my brother's favorite. So to each his own. This album is beautiful. I highly recommend.
I love you blonde redhead - can't wait for the next album!!!!

10 of 15 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Blonde Redhead - Penny Sparkle September 14, 2010

By Andrew Vice

Format:Audio CD

It seems that with age, Blonde Redhead have lost their edge. The band started out as a highly experimental art-rock trio, and while sometimes their tunes were a little too obtuse for their own good, there was no shortage of ideas on early albums. On Misery Is A Butterfly and 23, the band hit a sweet spot between art rock experimentation, shoegaze style, and poppy melodies, but with Penny Sparkle, all of that is gone. Pushing into the arena of soft electronic rock, the band have taken all of the bite out of 23 and left a sad and lonely shell of an album. While the melodies are pretty and all of the songs pleasant enough, there is very little on this album to compel listen after listen, the way that the first half of 23 would consistently draw the listener into another round after finishing the record's back half. Suitable as mood music for chilling out, there is little to engage with in a critical listening session. Even the record's cover indicates the relative banality of the music within. Adorned in a light pink font more suited to a high-end bar of soap, it serves as a warning to prospective listeners that this album is tame in the extreme. A couple of good songs exist on this record, primarily "My Plants Are Dead," "Everything is Wrong," and closer "Spain."