Carol Hodge is no stranger to us here, having popped up on several Ginger Wildheart tours, and having her last album reviewed right here. She’s a keyboardist by trade and knows how to string a good soulful song together, as well as having a great line in cover songs. Vertiginous Drops is album number four from her, and it’s an interesting and eclectic mix.
Being a solo artist, I think, gives you more creative freedom than being part of a band. You’re not beholden to anyone else in terms of songwriting, and your musings aren’t tempered by anyone else suggesting tweaks or wanting their bit to be more to the front. This shows in spades throughout Vertiginous Drops as each song is truly unique in terms of style and obvious influences. “The Price” kicks off sounding like an 80s synth-pop classic, and I can just picture the grainy video of a woman dancing slowly in the rain (a video which hasn’t been recorded yet, but should be). It’s a great song, catchy and upbeat until you listen to the lyrics!
Batman’s original sidekick gets a mention in the gorgeous piano ballad “Grayson (Things Always Could Be Worse)”. If there’s a song on here which shows off Hodge’s ability to be right at the centre of things, this is it. Just her voice, some keys and the bare minimum of background strings for atmosphere. Flipping things over from the previous track, it has a more downbeat tone but more upbeat message. Well, until you hear the likes of “Giving It Up Now” and the Beatles-esque “Oh, Amanda!”.
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The synth returns for “Never Run Out Of Things To Worry About”, but it couldn’t otherwise be any more different to “The Price”. Even the vocals have a slight robotic inflection in a song which really harks back to the same era which was the focus of Host’s recent release. Borderline title track “Clean The Slate” has sections which scream “James Bond theme”, and “Bitch, Don’t Break My Serenity” is likely the grittiest song on the album.
Blues are covered by “Wrong Side of the Glass”, an otherwise dreamy number with a brief guitar solo buried within. This song is all atmosphere.
There’s more on here, but I’m just going for another listen. If I had to pigeonhole Vertiginous Drops I’d pop it in “easy listening”, mainly due to the calm nature of many of the tracks and that they’re very much piano-based. You can really just kick back and let the songs wash over you, it’s not one you’ll be up moshing to by any stretch. However, there is more to it than that, and it bears so many repeat listens.
I liked Savage Purge. I love Vertiginous Drops.
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Header image by John Middleham
Vertiginous Drops is out now
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