1) What are this albums' strengths?
- Asides from some generally great songwriting and arrangements, I think the most outstanding quality of this album is Feist's voice. I can't say I've heard a voice like hers before, light as air, fragile and birdlike, and that kind of unique character is very important to a female vocalist for me. I tend to find female singer/songwriters dull, because their music relies so heavily on their voice, and tends to neglect the instrumentation beneath it. I don't find this problematic in Metals, in fact it's probably my favourite album released by a woman artist. It's a very balanced and complete feeling album.
2) What are its weaknessess?
- If I'm being honest, the downfall of this album and primary reason I feel disappointed that it won is that it doesn't break any new ground or bring anything brand new to art/indie/chamber pop. It's just a very good album of its kind in what I generally consider a poor year.
3) How does it compare to the artist's other work?
- The most superior album of the four she's released, and she's improved on each one of them. Monarch and Let it Die are pretty much throwaway releases; its only competition would be The Reminder, which is the album that put her on the map with the ipod theme song 1234. Personally, I think Metals takes the best moments of the Reminder and expounds on them. In comparison, the Reminder is an overlong, patchy, and top heavy album with a few outstanding tracks. Unfortunately, most people will remember her for the Reminder instead.
4) Favourite songs?
- The Bad in Each Other, A Commotion, Anti-Pioneer.
5) What feelings did this album evoke?
- It's generally a warm and uplifting album with some moments of cool autumn gray.
6) How does this album fit into your regular rotation?
- 50 spins accumulated since its release, which is pretty hefty for the year, easily the most played 2011 release. I'd call that regular, but I don't see it staying there.
7) What stood out to you about this album's themes, musically/lyrically?
- I appreciate that the title Metals can be drawn from the tinny guitars and the brassy saxophone sections present in the album. I think that was a smart observation.
11) How does this album compare to other albums nominated for this theme?
- When it came to my selecting an album, it came down to Metals, or Snowman's Absence. While I generally find Absence to be the more creative and intriguing album, I've also already done my best to recommend it to everyone participating in the club, and as such, I thought that Metals (which I find an easier album to put on, and excellent in a simpler way) would be a better choice for the club.
12) How does this album compare to others in its genre?
- This is my favourite singer/songwriter release by a woman. Compared to chamber pop influenced indie such as Broken Social Scene, Grizzly Bear, Other Lives, etc. I think it holds up very well; it just came at the end of a trend in indie music.
14) What does this album's artwork say about it? Is it well paired with the music?
- I think the artwork is a good match in terms of colour palette; the gray skies and silver reflections match the melodies and instrument timbres to me. I only recently realized that Feist is actually on the cover, so that was kind of a neat easter egg.
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