Picturesque Molly SKU: SCR255LP Barcode: 5060853702266 23.00 £23.00 Genre: Rock And Pop Label: Sonic Cathedral Released Date: 13th January 2023 Buying Format: 1LP Coloured Vinyl Out of stock Back Order Add to your Wishlist Description Product Info Sea Green Vinyl The album’s seemingly brief tracklisting belies a work of great beauty and depth, and one which turned into a one-man crusade for singer/guitarist Lars Andersson, intertwining deeply personal stories with his love for the era of Romanticism. “Every time I go to a museum and I’m about to pass through the era of Romanticism I stop in awe,” says Lars of the enduring appeal of the 18th century artistic movement. “Whatever it is – stories, paintings, music – it triggers something deep within me, something profoundly human. It really hits a nerve, and it utterly immerses me to a point where I can’t move.” The album replicates this feeling; a gloriously over-the-top blend of Slowdive and Sigur Rós, mixed with the single-mindedness of Daniel Johnston and the noisiness of Nirvana, it’s as bold and beautiful and every bit as ornate as the art that inspired it. Unlike their acclaimed debut, 2019’s All That Ever Could Have Been, which gradually came into focus with a 15-minute opening track, Picturesque hits home from the very first note of the short and sweet opener, ‘Ballerina’. That’s not to say there aren’t epics here – ‘Metamorphosis’ is essentially a 12-minute suite of three movements; blistering closer ‘The Lot’ is 11 minutes of Swans-inspired heaviness – but everything is much more direct and focused. This isn’t an album to lose yourself in, it’s one to get swept away by. “‘More is more’ was definitely the credo when making this record,” agrees Lars. “A big inspiration were bands like Pond and the way they manage to fill their songs up with stuff to the absolute maximum. While I definitely tried to give the listener some room to breathe at certain points and while, in good old post-rock fashion, it still builds up and breaks down, it relies much more on simple melody and harmony as opposed to noisy experimentation to transport feeling.” Never more so than on the first single, ‘The Golden Age’, which is the album’s centre-piece; a soaring slice of über-shoegaze that is so stunning you can’t take your eyes or ears off it. Like all the songs on the album, it’s based around a fairy-tale from the Romantic era. In this case, it’s Heinrich von Ofterdingen by the German poet, author and philosopher Novalis (other influences are: The Steadfast Tin Soldier by Hans Christian Andersen; The Seven Ravens and Hans in Luck by the Brothers Grimm; Undine by Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué and The Golden Pot by E.T.A. Hoffmann), with Lars drawing parallels between the titular character’s mystical and romantic searchings and his own personal quest. This is apt as the album has been an overriding obsession for Lars for the past two-and-a-half years; as well as writing and recording the songs (bandmate Phillip Dornauer played drums), he also mixed and mastered them at his Alpine Audio studio and Picturesque is very much his Brian Wilson or Kevin Shields moment. MOLLY were in the middle of their European tour when Covid hit in early 2020, forcing Lars to retreat back to his home outside Innsbruck and giving him time and space to think about every detail of the record. “Well, I was on a quest I guess,” he admits. “Like everyone, I was stranded at home and at some point I just said to myself, ‘If not now, then when?’ It was an intense process. I’ve worked on music from other bands and artists before but producing and mixing your own music is an utterly different animal. It was probably the most intense thing I’ve ever done, but it was also incredibly rewarding and the feeling of it all coming together piece by piece is incomparable.” The artwork is just as effective. “I think of Radiohead’s OK Computer – what you hear on the record is what you see on the cover,” explains Lars. “We were inspired by what we call ‘wimmelbilder’ [hidden pictures] in German, a very specific style in art where there are a lot of little things happening. When you see it from further away, it looks organic like a lost painting from the area of Romanticis m, but the closer you look the more digital it gets. It’s a nice analogy.” He’s right, it perfectly sums up the conflict between Romanticism and 21st century life. “Romanticism was basically an answer to the Industrial Revolution as well as the social and political norms of the Age Of Enlightenment,” concludes Lars. “Now, we all live in a much more industrialised, materialistic, individualistic and sterile society than any early Romanticist could have ever possibly imagined. Over 200 years later the Romanticists have lost the battle.” With the divine and downright pulchritudinous Picturesque, MOLLY begin the fightback. Artist Molly Genre Rock And Pop Label Sonic Cathedral Buying Options 1LP Coloured Vinyl Format 1LP , Coloured Vinyl Condition New Country UK Track Listings 1.Ballerina 2.Metamorphosis 3.The Golden Age 4.Sunday Kid 5.So To Speak 6.The Lot Share this On Facebook On Twitter Via Email More from Rock And Pop View Product Quick View Colour Me Wednesday Don’t Tell Anyone / Blossom Rock And Pop | American Laundromat | 7", Single Released 13th April 2018 £10.00 Back Order View Pre/Back Orders Colour Me Wednesday Don’t Tell Anyone / Blossom £10.00 Genre: Rock And Pop Label: American Laundromat SKU: ALR-0041 Formats: 7", Single Released Date: 13th April 2018 Read More Back Order View Pre/Back Orders View Product Quick View Butthole Surfers Rembrandt Pussyhorse Alternative Rock / Punk Rock / Emo | Latino Bugger Veil | 1LP, Includes Download Code Released 30th September 2013 £17.00 Back Order View Pre/Back Orders Butthole Surfers Rembrandt Pussyhorse £17.00 Genre: Alternative Rock / Punk Rock / Emo Label: Latino Bugger Veil SKU: LBV04 Formats: 1LP, Includes Download Code Released Date: 30th September 2013 Read More Back Order View Pre/Back Orders View Product Quick View Bill Fay Bill Fay Rock And Pop | 4 Men With Beards | 180g, 1LP Released 10th August 2016 £27.00 Back Order View Pre/Back Orders Bill Fay Bill Fay £27.00 Genre: Rock And Pop Label: 4 Men With Beards SKU: 4M818LP Formats: 180g, 1LP Released Date: 10th August 2016 Read More Back Order View Pre/Back Orders View Product Quick View Barry Adamson Love Sick Dick Rock And Pop | Central Control | 1LP Released 14th April 2017 £13.00 Back Order View Pre/Back Orders Barry Adamson Love Sick Dick £13.00 Genre: Rock And Pop Label: Central Control SKU: CCI026LP Formats: 1LP Released Date: 14th April 2017 Read More Back Order View Pre/Back Orders View Product Quick View Billie Marten Flora Fauna Rock And Pop | Fiction | 1LP, Coloured Vinyl, Gatefold Sleeve Released 21st May 2021 £18.00 - £20.00 Select options Billie Marten Flora Fauna £18.00 - £20.00 Genre: Rock And Pop Label: Fiction Formats: 1LP, Coloured Vinyl, Gatefold Sleeve Released Date: 21st May 2021 Read More Select options View Product Quick View Ordinary Boys, The The Ordinary Boys Rock And Pop | Treat Yourself Records | 1LP Released 2nd October 2015 £22.00 Back Order View Pre/Back Orders Ordinary Boys, The The Ordinary Boys £22.00 Genre: Rock And Pop Label: Treat Yourself Records SKU: TYS002 Formats: 1LP Released Date: 2nd October 2015 Read More Back Order View Pre/Back Orders View Product Quick View Various Artists 1 Love Rock And Pop | War Child Records / Virgin Music | 2LP, Coloured Vinyl Released 25th March 2022 £21.00 - £24.00 Select options Various Artists 1 Love £21.00 - £24.00 Genre: Rock And Pop Label: War Child Records / Virgin Music Formats: 2LP, Coloured Vinyl Released Date: 25th March 2022 Read More Select options View Product Quick View Black Any Colour You Like Vol. 2 (Hardback Book Edition) Rock And Pop | Vinyl 180 | 2LP, Gatefold Sleeve Released 9th December 2016 £43.00 Back Order View Pre/Back Orders Black Any Colour You Like Vol. 2 (Hardback Book Edition) £43.00 Genre: Rock And Pop Label: Vinyl 180 SKU: VIN180LP108 Formats: 2LP, Gatefold Sleeve Released Date: 9th December 2016 Read More Back Order View Pre/Back Orders View Product Quick View Pink Floyd Live At Knebworth 1990 Rock And Pop | Pink Floyd Records | 180g, 2LP, 45rpm, Gatefold Sleeve Released 30th April 2021 £36.00 Back Order View Pre/Back Orders Pink Floyd Live At Knebworth 1990 £36.00 Genre: Rock And Pop Label: Pink Floyd Records SKU: 0190295258504 Formats: 180g, 2LP, 45rpm, Gatefold Sleeve Released Date: 30th April 2021 Read More Back Order View Pre/Back Orders View Product Quick View Lewis Capaldi Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent Rock And Pop | EMI | 1LP, Picture Disc Released 19th May 2023 £26.00 Select options Lewis Capaldi Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent £26.00 Genre: Rock And Pop Label: EMI Formats: 1LP, Picture Disc Released Date: 19th May 2023 Read More Select options See more in Rock And Pop Start again
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