The album explores themes of identity, relationships, conflict, love, hope, and mysticism. It gives consolation to listeners and a voice to individuals who find it difficult to express their feelings through a range of musical genres, resulting in a well-rounded and satisfying piece of art.
Littleuniverses is a Montreal, Quebec-based artist who hopes to inspire people through her work and establish connections with a wide range of audiences. She thinks that each person’s relationship to art is special and that it connects with people in such a profound way that it gives those who experience it life by giving them courage, comfort, empathy, and joy. She chose the name “littleuniverses” in order to create these parallel doors for listeners to enter and see a variety of enigmatic stories come to life.
Littleuniverses made the decision to pursue her music career the following year on New Year’s Eve of 2018. After that, Littleuniverses collaborated with Jacoby on a number of singles in 2019 and an EP in 2020. The Canada Council for the Arts awarded her a grant in February 2022 to produce an album. Littleunverses released her dark slowcore self-titled album on February 10, 2023. Arjan Miranda (of Black Mountain) played guitar, synth, bass, and beats on the album with Littleuniverses, and the album’s producer, Randall Dunn (of Sunn O)), Zola Jesus, Anna von Hausswolf, and Myrkur, played synth. By emulating the dark folk and dark gentle core, rock, and jazz styles embraced in the album, Randall Dunn brought Littleuniverses‘ dark and ethereal, poetic, and cinematic dichotomy to life.
The ten-track album “Littleuniverses” reflects on themes of identity, relationships, struggle, the pursuit of meaning and beauty, love, hope, mysticism, and the passage of time. According to littleuniverses, “I sometimes take a more abstract approach to these topics in my music so listeners of any gender can also find a piece of themselves in the music and relate.” Each song becomes a part of the listener’s experience as a result of the narrative. Along the journey of the album, it gives a voice to those who have a hard time expressing their emotions and provides comfort.
“Littleuniverses” Tracklist:
1. Magic
2. Woman
3. Bird in your hat
4. Forever to never again
5. Will I be a mother
6. Snowflakes
7. Sword
8. Your lake
9. 8
10. Send it away
The dark wisteria of “Magic” opens the album. A song that clearly and strongly conveys melancholy. The slow-burning arrangement of lulling fingerpicked arpeggios and distant, distorted electric guitar that plays hard hitting deep lines complements the vocal acrobatics, which sound warm and inviting but are ultimately laden with danger and darkness. When the changes in harmony do occur, they are frightful and dramatic, while the keyboard plays serenely and angelically, like a welcoming light at the end of a dark tunnel.
With its native American drum cycling waltz, “Woman” resembles the middle of Peter Hammill‘s composition “Modern” from his 1974 masterpiece, “The Silent Corner and the Empty Stage,” and conjures up the carousel dance transformed into an ominous guitar chord change. Then, “Bird In Your Hat” takes on a futuristic new wave aesthetic with electro-drum beats, Wurlitzer piano, and screaming synths, while “Forever to Never Again” is a Black-and-White, accordion-and-Beatles-jangling stroll through 1950s Paris.
With personal, simple-to-understand vocals and songwriting, “Will I Be a Mother” is a vast and expansive introspective piece. Massive, airy synths and walls of tasty reverb are used to create a floating, mid-space atmosphere that propels the songs’ aesthetic and aids in the music’s development of a truly distinct identity. The album’s lead single is “Sword.” The most dynamic, rocking, and approachable song on the album which has a prominent chord progression that descends, tight drums, buzzing atmospheres, and intensely distorted guitars. It has the release’s scariest sound.
The album’s final three tracks are three incredibly diverse sonic experiments. The bizarre folk-funk fusion on “Your Lake” is exactly what I needed. Thanks to a generally hospitable atmosphere with moving, funky guitar riffs, a relatively bright chord progression, melodic bass lines, and gentle percussion, this song is a warm very welcome left turn on the album. Massive “8” has walls of synths and a reverb that looks like it might swallow the entire planet. It is the only song on the album to make use of drones, a technique that is far too obvious for this aesthetic.
A lengthy segment of the song “8” feature lyricless vocal panache that plays with vocal processing using colored delays and reverbs, a throbbing bass, and rhythmic grand piano strokes. The hammering drones in this song are unquestionably the most ominous and desperate parts of this dark album. It’s difficult to listen to. The intimate and depressing “Send It Away,” an acoustic ballad full of mystery and drama, serves as the album’s final track.
This album is an astonishingly complete, restrained, and cohesive piece of art. Randall Dunn (Myrkur & Anna von Hausswolf) superb and rich production is undoubtedly the cherry on top, producing mixes that are faultless and perfectly in line with the artist’s vision. This difficult and taxing listen is undoubtedly rewarding. a work of art that deserves careful consideration.
Go Listen Now!
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