Weyes Blood (aka Natalie Mering) is back with her follow-up to 2019's critically acclaimed Titanic Rising. Titanic Rising saw Mering's star rise in the alt community and And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow should continue this trend. Mering delivers with her throwback styled vocals over playful melodies that would give labelmate Father John Misty a run for his money.
The album opens with "It's Not Just Me, It's Everybody", a classically tinged track that reminds of Jenny Lewis at times. It's all about the human condition and how we're connected. Mering moves on in theme to focus on human isolation. Of this, she stated "I was asking a lot of questions while writing these songs. Hyper isolation kept coming up...Our culture relies less and less on people. Something is off, and even though the feeling appears differently for each individual, it is universal" via press release.
For me the high moment of the album was "God Turned Me Into a Flower". This song felt transcendental in it's approach and almost like a religious experience with it's atmospheric melodies and array of vocal tracks. Another strong moment on the album is the interplay of the guitar solo and Mering's vocals on "Hearts Aglow". For us the themes of human isolation was moving, especially in a period of time where people are trying to come back together post-COVID. Wrapped up in a package that sounds very warm and almost familiar makes for an interesting bit of messaging to wrap one's head around.
Rating - 4/5