Lauren RabainoView this record as the latest chapter in an epic starting in southern England in 1988, when Robert Wratten and Micheal Hiscock started a band with a drum machine. This band, The Field Mice, released a seven-inch single on Sarah Records called “Emma’s House” that would, years later, be considered a landmark piece for the seemingly contradictory sound of what was eventually dubbed indie pop – what I’d describe as jubilantly remorseful music. Postmortem, The Field Mice were mythologized as lost heroes of the genre (well, to a extremely small group of music geeks anyway). But Bobby Wratten never really stopped making music.
“The Last Holy Writer” is the seventh release from Wratten’s current vehicle, Trembling Blue Stars, and seems to have more in common with “Emma’s House” than with the prior TBS discography. The common architecture is this: consistently gorgeous melodic arrangements surrounding some seriously downtrodden lyrical content. Surmising the feel of this beautifully depressing legacy is the breathtaking second track, “Idywylld,” which engages in a nearly celebratory indulgence of disappointment: a parade of crucified friendships, shattered dreams, wasted lives and the inevitability of growing old alone but for your own agonizing, ever-present regret (mandatory listening for all my fellow Cal Poly super-seniors). But the best thing about this song – what really sells it –
is Beth Arzy.
Formerly of Californian indie-pop outfit Aberdeen, Arzy provides backing vocals on nearly all present tracks, and lead vocals for a total of three songs on “Holy Writer” – all of which are definite high points. Though her voice is of the breathy variety, her delivery is powerful and clear, soaring above the instrumentation in a kind of distant, angelic perfection. This trait is particularly notable on the near-eight minute “A Statue to Wilde.” You’ll have to decide on your own whether to smile or cringe at the Oscar Wilde shout out.
This isn’t to say that the Wratten-voiced numbers are to be skipped. The record actually holds its momentum even at its most predictable points, namely the requisite break-up song, titled indicatively, “The Coldest Sky.” Remember that Wratten doesn’t only write break-up songs (just as Volvo doesn’t only build station wagons) but the first couple of TBS records were composed of little else. The counterpoint to this is “November Starlings,” which is somewhat of an oddity in its relatively happy, optimistic lyrics and reminded me of one of my favorite old Field Mice songs, “Coach Station Reunion.” This record is the best executed recording TBS has made to date and the first to equal any of the old Field Mice releases.
On that note of nostalgia, I’ll mention that the production is handled by Ian Catt of Saint Etienne. (Catt has produced the majority of Wratten’s work, starting with the “Emma’s House” demo back in ’88, working out of his parents’ spare bedroom.) Whether or not you’ve heard any earlier records, I’d recommend “Holy Writer” to anyone who’s a fan of pretty songs. Or sad songs. Or music.
Jesse Bo Widmark is an architectural engineering senior and a business director at KCPR, San Luis Obispo, 91.3 FM.