Love In Constant Spectacle＜限定盤/Colored Vinyl＞

English singer, songwriter, and cosmic voyager Jane Weaver continues her journey outward on Love in Constant Spectacle, her tenth solo record and her most emotionally based set of songs to date. Weavers discography is full of direct hits, with some of her most remarkable material drawing from Krautrock-styled repetition, Stereolabs blithe pop, Broadcasts eerily captivating melodic flare, and Goldfrapp-esque synth grooves. These touchstones are still present throughout Love in Constant Spectacle, but Weaver pushes them further musically and thematically. The space-aged funk approach of her 2021 album Flock shows up in a slightly more reserved form on album opener "Perfect Storm," which is more a nod to Bowies Berlin days cavorting with Brian Eno than like the Prince-influenced moments on Flock. Slippery syncopated synths lock in with loose, happy-go-lucky basslines as Weavers austere voice glides in and out of dubby swells of tape echo. While wavy synth lines and warped surf guitars decorate "Romantic Worlds," the drums and vocals are very much earthbound, with dry, loud production pushing them to the center of the mix. This synthesis of sounds both far-flung and straightforward works well throughout the album and might be the result of these songs being Weavers first collaboration with John Parish, a producer best known for his work with PJ Harvey, Sparklehorse, Aldous Harding, and others. Where Weavers earlier albums were more about the mystique created by her alien sound world, Love in Constant Spectacle feels a little more human. The lazy soft rock instrumentation and upfront vocals of "Emotional Components" and the wounded undertones that peek out from beneath a Silver Apples-y drum pattern on "Happiness in Proximity" give these songs a reflective, sometimes aching tone. Weavers songs still sound beamed in from distant galaxies, but here she seems to be coming to grips with the feeling that love and loss are more universal than she thought, even when happening on planets far from Earth. ~ Fred Thomas