Blind was the stand out track from Hercules & Love Affair's eponymous first album. Packed full as it was with updated twists upon classic disco, house and techno stylings with a more contemporary lyrical subject matter usually around identity. Hence the vocally ambiguous presence of Anthony Hegarty now Anohni , on vocals. It was probably a lot of people's first introduction to his unique voice, at least outside of his albums of reflectively sad ballads and torch songs. He had only recently won the Mercury Prize for the album I am A Bird Now in 2005. Here he hits this track running, as its rhythm chugs along getting progressively more hardcore and aggressive in tone. There is an insistence behind it that makes it much more than the dance floor filler that it is. It struts, rather than stomps, as Anohni's vocals declaim over the top.. Its stays on my playlist year in year out because its that good.
To hear you now
I can look outside myself
And I must examine my breath and look inside
Because I feel blind
Because I feel blind
Blind barely reached the UK charts topping at No 40. So I dare say for the majority of the general public it came and went in the blink of an eye. Amazingly the band was founded by Andy Butler in the aftermath of persuading Hegarty to perform the vocals on the song Blind. They have worked with each other on and off ever since, most recently on their 2022 album In Amber. The band remains largely Butler's creation and there is a constantly rotating list of musicians who have done work as part of Hercules & Love Affair. Whilst the band has never made it big here or in the US, they remain a influential entity operating perversely in the background.
No comments:
Post a Comment