We're still pretty much at the beginning of the year but there's already a tendency that is starting to shape 2008: music is turning inwards. Less dependent on instrumental ear-catching tricks, musicians seem to be searching for their own deep hidden secrets before sharing them with the rest of the world. The new releases by Goldfrapp or Atlas Sound (side project of Bradford Cox, aka Deerhunter frontman) are some of the newest examples, along with the numerous folk records lately hitting the shelves. "Devotion", the second album from Baltimore project Beach House, is one of the best examples of this. With a very strong identity from start to end, it could be argued that nothing much differentiates each of its 11 songs. But after looking a bit deeper, it becomes clearer that this record is full of haunting thoughts and memories, making it a much more intense experience than you'd probably expect. Ingredients are sparse but elegantly detailed (reverb voices, pastoral organs, lo-fi guitars and discreet beats), while the songs seem like dense giving moments with a few narcotic powers. This is enough to build a somewhat holy atmosphere that is almost breathtaking. (8/10)
Beach House - You Came To Me (video)
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