Blonde Redhead - "Penny Sparkle"
"So, what the hell is that sound? A gas valve? An old hard drive? Or Kazu Makino?" You might be asking yourself that question repeatedly throughout Blonde Redhead’s Penny Sparkle. Noted for almost completely changing their sound in 2000’s Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons, Blonde Redhead has never had a penchant for sounding like a normal band. Earlier incarnations had a rougher and more aggressive sound. Ever since 2004’s Misery is a Butterfly, the band has approached elegant songwriting majesty, producing material that easily conjures up sophistication and outrageousness simultaneously.
The mystery Blonde Redhead present on Penny Sparkle is confusing and more subdued than in the past, but it’s still present despite more experimentation with song structure and instrumentation, almost to a level that invades. However, it is this experimentation that could be the album’s strong point, so let’s celebrate that. One could easily write off the album as coked out or dreamy. I’ve even heard references to shoegazer - but I don’t think Penny Sparkle is really that generic. Blonde Redhead has always had a subtle approach that could pass for shoegazer although I would never classify the band as such. The band’s output has been so varied from album to album that they really consistently produce different and surprising releases.
On 2007’s 23, the 6th track, 'Silently', gave us an intricate, ornate, all-out approachable pop song. Penny Sparkle is rife with references to that sensibility, but the approach this time is different. It’s almost as if the framework of the song was used as a format for many of the tracks on this album. What am I talking about? Easily, Kazu Makino’s vocals are what standout, and can be seen as a main focus of any track she leads on. Add anything somewhat “dreamy” and quirky sounding, and you have a formulaic structure. It’s unfortunate, but that’s the way it sounds.
Track 2, 'Not Getting There', could easily pass as a spy thriller movie theme. This momentum is rather steadily passed on to the ambiently orchestrated following track, ‘Will There Be Stars’. We reach a rather sparse position in the album with the next track, ‘My Plants are Dead’. One track on the album that particularly stands out is track 5, ‘Love or Prison’. The heavily reverbed guitar score and over usage of strange sound effects is prevalent, but I think it’s an important development. The song is probably the definitive song on the album, as the last portion of the song leaves the listener hanging in a completely isolated and minimal space, questioning for more. The album past this point is pretty much more of the same experience. Earlier inflections of synthesizer pulsations creep back in as the sophisticated song structures and presentation envelope the listener. The album’s title track features more vocal experimentation, and it’s worth mentioning that Makino’s vocal range is definitely the band’s primary standout feature. The musicianship is always solid and fascinating, but it’s the singer that immediately stands out. Following the title track, the album reenters a relaxed state, concluding with the final track, ‘Spain’, sending the listener off to a pulsating.
The complicated arrangements on Penny Sparkle may be challenging, but they are ultimately rewarding. As with many experimental auditory projects, the payoff is what may reward positive critical reception. I don’t think there is a huge payoff in the album, but it’s not your typical payoff, which is what leads me to believe that Penny Sparkle is for Blonde Redhead fans. It’s not a very radio friendly album, and commercial radio would not be able to chop up the song to sell more commercials easily. Who knows, maybe a re-edit would present interesting results, though Penny Sparkle is completely interesting in its own right.
