The trail to Bethany Cosentino’s solo debut started with an enormous query: “What the fuck am I doing with my life?” Greater than a decade spent as half of the acclaimed indie pop duo Finest Coast left her with an absence of id exterior of the band. However then, as she notes on this album’s accompanying notes, she began asking even greater questions, this time questioning: “What occurs for those who cease residing your life for different folks and at last subscribe to the concept that you don’t owe anybody something, however owe your self every little thing?” The reply is ‘Pure Catastrophe’, 12 tracks that see Consentino embracing sunny, pop-rock jaunts that mirror the folk-rock and Americana dabbles of Sheryl Crow, Bonnie Raitt and Jewel, in a shameless nod to larger-than-life feminine songwriters.
- READ MORE: Finest Coast’s Bethany Cosentino: “I questioned whether or not I might ever have the ability to make music once more”
Produced by musician Butch Walker at his Nashville studio, Cosentino’s LP smiles again on the precarious nature of life, the passing of time and love by way of a pop-folk-coloured lens. The album’s title observe was influenced by the early days of the pandemic, the interior battle of considering nothing issues anymore and every little thing issues much more concurrently, all performed out towards twangy, vivid guitars.
‘It’s Effective’ takes on the type of ’90s radio hit, as she sings “Take a look at all of the pink flowers within the rearview / Jogs my memory of the seasons that I wasted on you” over rock-and-roll meets nation pop preparations. Her observe ‘Outta Time’ enlists pedal-steel work and mandolins in a climbing anthem about urgently trying to find indicators and the unavoidable passing of time, backed by an enormous refrain and a hearty guitar solo.
Album nearer, ‘I Acquired Information For You’, drives the message of threat and reward residence in stripped-back demo kind, a call Cosentino and Walker made to not masquerade the weak message behind the delicate piano ballad. In it, she sings, “I obtained information for you if we go down this highway there’s a lot extra to lose / Am I the one one whose afraid of believing that is real love / Do you are feeling it too?” earlier than her voice cracks on the chorus and she or he offers into the songs prevailing emotion. It’s the identical heartbreakingly optimistic feeling tying collectively every observe of the album.
In Could, Cosentino introduced her solo debut the identical day Finest Coast introduced their “indefinite hiatus”. It was a daring transfer, however judging by the fruits of ‘Pure Catastrophe’, it was price it. “It’s actually scary to take these dangers and make massive adjustments in your life,” she mentioned on the time. “However what you discover on the opposite aspect will be so magical.” So it’s.
Particulars
- Launch date: July 28, 2023
- Report label: Harmony
