Feist – Pleasure

Feist’s last album ‘Metals’ came out in 2011. A whole six years ago. It’s not unusual for Leslie Feist to take her time when gearing up to release a new record (a little over four years passed between her breakthrough LP ‘The Reminder’ and ‘Metals’) but an awful lot has happened since then. Back in 2011, the thought of Donald Trump being President of the United States or Brexit wasn’t even a tiny thought in someone’s mind, let alone a very real prospect. Things have changed. And so, it seems, has Feist. Her new album ‘Pleasure’ is promising to be a sparser record compared to some of her previous works, and the title track gives a firm indication of what that truly means. It’s very lo-fi and bluesy, some of the scratching and squeaking of her hands moving across the fretboards clearly heard, occasionally bursting out into heavy, dirty riffs. Her voice, usually brimming with warmth, is sometimes recognisably airy, but by the time the song’s climax comes around she’s cracking up, beginning to wail and go into a heady trance that’s reminiscent of early PJ Harvey. ‘My Moon My Man’ or ‘1234’ this ain’t. It’s Feist as you’ve never heard her before, raw and truly vital.