Music Arcades: The Clientele: The Violet Hour

The Violet Hour has always felt to me like The Clientele's most elusive album. I've listened to it loads of times, but somehow only a few of the songs 'stick'. Elusive doesn't necessarily mean not good… but in practice it probably does.

So I was surprised to read this exchange when My Old Kentucky Blog interviewed The Clientele's Alasdair Maclean:

MOKB : Let's say you meet someone who's never heard your music, but would like to. Which album do you give them and why?

MacLean : I guess I’d give them the Violet Hour cos that seems to be everyone’s favourite these days. Although I remember the fans being disappointed by it when it came out (grumbles to himself in an incoherent way).

I got this vinyl copy of the album only two months ago at the band's most recent gig at The Luminaire. Word had got out that a bundle of these copies were available on the merchandise stall, so I came prepared to snap one up (see yesterday for more Clientele vinyl collecting).

This is the first time I've listened to it, and it makes more sense/is more accessible in this format. As it invariably does, the enforced break half way through helps give shape to the album. More broadly, the vinyl adds authenticity to the strong background hiss that always risked sounding affected on the CD.

Photo by Alasdair, cc licensed.

I believe the recording of the album was dogged with equipment failures that may have contributed to this sound, yet it seems intentional, as though the music were behind a veil. It can't be a coincidence that fog features several times in the lyrics, along with soft light filtered through trees; like Alasdair's lomography photos.

The stillness as Missing started was tangible, interrupting my train of thought and pulling me in as only stillness can.

Buy vinyl copy from MusicStack