Review: Beach House – Depression Cherry

Beach House

Depression Cherry

Sub Pop

Street: 08.28

Beach House = (Spiritualized + Galaxie 500) x Exitmusic

In Depression Cherry, Victoria Legrand and Alex Scally have made a return to simplicity, recoiling from the lush, sweeping force of Bloom to a more private and haunting space, taking on dream pop’s more translucent and gossamer slant with vocals that are more ghostly and silken than ever. Still, it’s undeniably Beach House: In “Sparks,” they swirl into cascading, reverberating shoegaze revivalism; in “PPP,” they highlight their signature organ arpeggios; and in “Wildflower,” Legrand’s robust contralto croons modest melodies.

Although the album at times languishes toward the formless and directionless, Depression Cherry is another piece of elegantly produced, reverie-inspired ear candy that becomes sweeter and more alluring with each taste—this is Beach House as they slowly drift their way toward (as Legrand sings in “Wildflower”) “The sky and what’s left above it.” –Kathy Zhou