Jenny Owen Youngs and the case of the missing post title
There is something unfortunate about an artist that manages to hit the ground running. Often it will set the bar unreasonably high for what is to come. Art Brut have never managed another Formed A Band, Kate Nash could never live up to The Nicest Thing and Voxtrot will likely never top The Start Of Something. None of which negates anything they do later on, and indeed many will continue to put out good records. But the lingering feeling of “it’s not as good as..” will always remain.
Which brings us to Jenny Owen Youngs. Three years ago, she appeared out of nowhere with the near-perfect Fuck Was I. It was the first song I’d ever heard of hers, and it instantly became a favourite. The problem is that upon getting the full album, Batten the Hatches, there was an element of disappointment. Certainly, it contained a number of worthy songs, but nothing held me as much as Fuck Was I managed to.
Still, this long after, maybe it’s easier to look at things with a different perspective. Or, based on Led To The Sea, perhaps it isn’t. It’s certainly a different type of song, rather more upbeat, flirting with more elaborates song design. Various layers do give a richer sound to the proceedings, but seemingly at the expense of the intimacy.
Maybe I’m just opposed to any change to the things I like. Or maybe I’m just expecting too much. Led To The Sea is s solid song, and I look forward to hearing what the full album brings. Perhaps it isn’t so wrong if Fuck Was I is never matched.
The Led To The Sea EP will be released on April 7, and Transmitter Failure will be released on May 26, both via Nettwerk.
I agree. This isn’t a bad song, though it’s more “POP” than I was expecting. It’s no where near as good as Fuck Was I.