Music
[Album Review] Bat For Lashes ‘The Haunted Man’
It was in 2009 that I got hooked into Bat For Lashes’ sophomore album Two Suns. Something about the haunting, ethereal songs touched me and I was unable to stop listening to the album for a good few weeks. I still come back to it on occasion, playing the album from beginning to end without skipping a single track. But there came a point where I realized that, for as much as I loved those songs, I wanted something new, a new journey to undertake.
So when I heard that a new album was on the way, I was immediately intrigued and full of anticipation. After all, Bat For Lashes puts out a style of music that I don’t really hear anywhere else, so it’s like getting a breath of fresh air, a new playground in which to have fun. And so I entered into The Haunted Man with somewhat baited breath, wondering if it could match what I had wanted for the past year.
The album kicks off with “Lilies”, which starts off almost like a mellow surf rock ballad and morphs into a more electronic piece, yet still holds onto the ballad aspect from the beginning. It’s one of those tracks that just puts a smile on your face, especially when Natasha Khan jubilantly cries out, “Thank god I’m alive!” right before strings triumphantly sing forth.
From a production point, the album is stunning. Full of rich, diverse tones, this is an album that needs to be listened to through either fantastic speakers or headphones. It was incredibly easy for me to get hypnotized and lost in the mix, drifting from one beautiful sound to another.
Above I wrote that Bat For Lashes’ music is like entering a playground, which might be the best way to describe The Haunted Man. Each song is a new area to explore, full of rich possibilities that cater to and encourage the imagination. It can also be described as a phantasmagoric, labyrinthine experience, where rays of light and hope are sprinkled throughout.
The Final Word: The Haunted Man plays out like a rich poem where every line can be appreciated for its phrasing, length, and meaning. Bat For Lashes has put out another stunning release. Very highly recommended.
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AMC has announced that The Vampire Lestat: One Night Only LIVE, the standing-room-only performance celebrating AMC’s premiere of its newly-released The Vampire Lestat at New York City’s iconic Beacon Theatre last month, will debut on streaming.
The Vampire Lestat: One Night Only LIVE begins streaming on AMC+ on August 23.
Ahead of its streaming premiere, fans can preview the concert event, featuring original songs from series composer Daniel Hart and performed by Sam Reid, in Hall H at Comic Con International on July 24.
Our own Daniel Kurland attended the special event, highlighting how electric the Immortal Vampire is on stage: “It’s clear in this season of television that Reid was born to be a rock star, but it’s surreal to see him effortlessly command the stage — and the audience — at every step of the concert. He recites Shakespeare monologues and bitches out Armand between songs, all while the audience screams in support. For the duration of this concert, Reid is Lestat, and he’s given thousands of fans a memory that’s as immortal as any vampire.”
Based on Anne Rice‘s The Vampire Chronicles book series, The Vampire Lestat is the rock and roll-centric third season of AMC’s “Interview with the Vampire” created by showrunner Rolin Jones.
The Vampire Lestat goes on an electric multi-city tour while being haunted by “muses” from his wild and rebellious past. As his band’s popularity and star power rises, so does Lestat’s influence over vampires and humans alike, leaving others to contend with Lestat’s power in the face of the Great Conversion, an unnatural surge in the vampire population.
Jacob Anderson, Assad Zaman, Eric Bogosian, Delainey Hayles and Jennifer Ehle star with Reid. Executive producers include Jones, Mark Johnson, Hannah Moscovitch, the late Anne Rice, and her son Christopher Rice.
The series finale airs this Sunday, July 19, on AMC and AMC+.
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