first song that’s a collaboration between artists! well, i did shoegaze last week, so why not do something similar again? cocteau twins are a pretty legendary dream pop band that are actually a trio. they preceded shoegaze, but they’re so close to the shoegaze era/sound i practically consider them a shoegaze band.
i remember listening to “Sugar Hiccup” the first time and feeling utterly confused by elizabeth fraser’s alien-like vocals and the swirling, lazy guitars. it’s almost impossible for me to understand what she’s singing about- most of my bloody valentine’s vocals are more discernible than this. it doesn’t sound like she speaks in any actual language, either. cocteau twins have been on my listening list for a long time, particularly Heaven or Las Vegas, which i’ll get to… eventually.
i came across “Sea, Swallow Me” by accident through auto-play and was immediately struck by that opening piano. i don’t think i’ve ever heard a keyboard/piano sample that good and beautifully ethereal except the synth in “Spider in the Snow” by the Dismemberment Plan, which isn’t even supposed to be ethereal. and then the slow drumbeat and the chiming guitar comes in, working around the piano sample that’s repeated throughout the whole song. and then there’s fraser’s cutting, but somewhat calming vocals, and given how high-pitched and dominant her voice is, it’s a bit surprising that it mostly stays between the guitar and the piano, pitch-wise, until we get to the soaring, falsetto chorus. there’s something about fraser’s vocals that almost make her sound like a dramatic opera singer belting behind woozy, liquid instrumentation in a giant chamber. contrary to the title, i don’t think there’s much of an overwhelming sea of sound enveloping everything. but everything in this song just seems to float together in a lush sort of way.
give it a listen if you haven’t already!
q-street 