28-12-2023, 19:30
BEN DE LA COUR ~ Sweet Anhedonia
![[Image: MDktODk3OS5qcGVn.jpeg]](https://i.discogs.com/4ogVn79LplJcRRoV3jKNWyi6Cb8U4WSFzVhaKE49t1M/rs:fit/g:sm/q:90/h:555/w:599/czM6Ly9kaXNjb2dz/LWRhdGFiYXNlLWlt/YWdlcy9SLTI3MDA2/OTIxLTE2ODM0ODcx/MDktODk3OS5qcGVn.jpeg)
It’s taken a while for me to get to this album, which is not new – (it was released in the first half of the year, I think) despite seeing the exhortations of one Jim White (who I follow on FB) – he produced it too. I have to say, I’m glad to have heard it now. Anhedonia – a new word for me. I was asking myself whether that was a person, maybe – or a place?? Turns out it IS a place – sort of – a place where you might find yourself mentally. Anhedonia is the inability to feel pleasure – a disenchantment with everything. It's a symptom of depression and other disorders of the mind. A sort of tiredness or jadedness with everything. I read that it is common in those who have had addictions, dabbled in substance abuse, etc., and perhaps this is where it came from for De La Cour who as of now, is 5 years sober and doing his bit to help kids in trouble. He went out on the road at a young age and somehow filtered through the school of hard knocks. Literally in one sense – he did a stint as a boxer.
Strong lyrics – I can’t imagine Jim White endorsing anyone unintelligent or inarticulate. I think you’d have to listen a few times to pick up all the nuances but essentially what you have here is a storyteller – a teller of gritty tales – shades of 16 Horsepower, Tom Waits, Lee Clayton (who similarly didn’t have a great voice but that didn’t seem to matter - can't quite put a finger on what reminded me of him, but it's there!), a troubadour with a dark and somewhat wavy edge. Americana with no candy coating and of the underground oeuvre, you could say, while not being as dark as Nick Cave, for example.
Nice sounds – a good selection of instruments and musos - I'm tuned into those - fab fiddle and even a trumpet. I am also aware of Mr White’s liking for creating sonic effects with various bits of hardware, including gardening implements, so it was highly unlikely that the album would lacking in the interesting sounds department! As I previously alluded, Ben De La Cour doesn’t have what one might traditionally consider to be a stellar voice, in my opinion, but that’s ok – it works perfectly in the context of the material - and he believes in what he's singing - this is good.
It's always difficult to say whether anyone else might like something but y’know, when someone writes lyrics with meaning and great imagery – it would be silly to pass them over, IMHO. And the songs are well constructed. One line I picked up on is “… the shadows of my youth departing swiftly from the scene”. So have a whirl – you never can tell what might strike a chord.
"Numbers Game" with Lynne Hanson - the only proper duet on the album ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyW-nZRLNK8
"Brother" ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmVQ9ac85Yo
"Appalachian Book of the Dead" ...
It’s taken a while for me to get to this album, which is not new – (it was released in the first half of the year, I think) despite seeing the exhortations of one Jim White (who I follow on FB) – he produced it too. I have to say, I’m glad to have heard it now. Anhedonia – a new word for me. I was asking myself whether that was a person, maybe – or a place?? Turns out it IS a place – sort of – a place where you might find yourself mentally. Anhedonia is the inability to feel pleasure – a disenchantment with everything. It's a symptom of depression and other disorders of the mind. A sort of tiredness or jadedness with everything. I read that it is common in those who have had addictions, dabbled in substance abuse, etc., and perhaps this is where it came from for De La Cour who as of now, is 5 years sober and doing his bit to help kids in trouble. He went out on the road at a young age and somehow filtered through the school of hard knocks. Literally in one sense – he did a stint as a boxer.
Strong lyrics – I can’t imagine Jim White endorsing anyone unintelligent or inarticulate. I think you’d have to listen a few times to pick up all the nuances but essentially what you have here is a storyteller – a teller of gritty tales – shades of 16 Horsepower, Tom Waits, Lee Clayton (who similarly didn’t have a great voice but that didn’t seem to matter - can't quite put a finger on what reminded me of him, but it's there!), a troubadour with a dark and somewhat wavy edge. Americana with no candy coating and of the underground oeuvre, you could say, while not being as dark as Nick Cave, for example.
Nice sounds – a good selection of instruments and musos - I'm tuned into those - fab fiddle and even a trumpet. I am also aware of Mr White’s liking for creating sonic effects with various bits of hardware, including gardening implements, so it was highly unlikely that the album would lacking in the interesting sounds department! As I previously alluded, Ben De La Cour doesn’t have what one might traditionally consider to be a stellar voice, in my opinion, but that’s ok – it works perfectly in the context of the material - and he believes in what he's singing - this is good.
It's always difficult to say whether anyone else might like something but y’know, when someone writes lyrics with meaning and great imagery – it would be silly to pass them over, IMHO. And the songs are well constructed. One line I picked up on is “… the shadows of my youth departing swiftly from the scene”. So have a whirl – you never can tell what might strike a chord.
"Numbers Game" with Lynne Hanson - the only proper duet on the album ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyW-nZRLNK8
"Brother" ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmVQ9ac85Yo
"Appalachian Book of the Dead" ...
"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us." ~ Bill Watterson