4AD
U.S. Girls | Bless This Mess - Red Vinyl
4AD0506LPE
24/02/23
Limited edition indies-only red vinyl
The highly anticipated eighth album by U.S. Girls, the nom deplume of North American multi-disciplinary and experimental pop artist Meg Remy, is entitled ‘Bless This Mess’.
A dynamic suite of dexterous melodies and a nuanced artistic response to the complexities of motherhood, ‘Bless This Mess’was crafted in tandem with the conception and birth of Remy’s twin boys.
It expands the sonic and thematic palette of U.S. Girls, fusing the muses of funk, mythology, and the radical disorientation of joy into an electric tapestry of anthems, aches, and awakenings. As Remy’s body changed, so did her voice; her diaphragm lost breathing room, adjusting to the growing lives inside. Many takes on ‘Bless This Mess’ were tracked with the babies in utero, or in her arms. (She even samples her breast pump on the album’s poetic closing cut, ‘Pump’). The resulting performances are suffused by the physicality of this journey:more blood, more feelings, the interwoven wonders, and wounds of procreation.
The ten songs on ‘Bless This Mess’ were pieced together stem by stem with a vast cast of collaborators (Alex Frankel of Holy Ghost!, Marker Starling, Ryland Blackinton of Cobra Starship, Basia Bulat, Roger Manning Jr. of Jellyfish and Beck) and audio engineers (Neal H Pogue, Ken Sluiter, Steve Chahley, Maximilian Turnbull). Long-time collaborator, husband, and co-parent Turnbull played a key role facilitating these fluid muses.
The production throughout is exquisite, warm, and wood panelled, framing the voice, keys, bass, and rhythms in heightened textural harmony.
Originally from Illinois, Meg Remy is established as one of themost acclaimed songwriters and performers to emerge fromToronto’s eclectic underground music scene where shecurrently lives.