Listing the Best Albums of 2009 from A to Z: Bat for Lashes

Bat For Lashes
Two Suns

Released April 6th on Astralwerks (US) and Parlophone (UK)

“Whenever I’m writing music it’s a very visual place in my mind” – Natasha Khan

I can’t remember what music blog I discovered this band on, but all I know is that I liked their name and couldn’t wait to hear them. As it turns out, it’s not exactly a band per se. Bat For Lashes is the moniker in which British singer/songwriter Natasha Khan goes by. She sings, plays piano, guitar, the harpsichord and autoharp. She took an interest in music after her professional squash (racquetball) playing father abandoned her family. She was also a victim of racism while a young child in school, and would often skip classes to stay home and listen to Nirvana all day. During her teen years, she toured the United States and Mexico with her boyfriend, before going back to Britain to attend the University of Brighton, where she studied music and visual arts.

She began writing her first album, Fur And Gold, when she was working as a nursery school teacher. The album peaked at #48 on the UK Album charts and was nominated for a Mercury Prize in 2007. The album produced four singles; “The Wizard”, “Trophy”, “What’s A Girl To Do?” and “Prescilla.” In 2007, she went out on her first US tour, featuring a performance at Austin’s South by Southwest Music Festival, as well as a performance at the largest music festival in the world, England’s Glastonbury Festival. She also received two BRIT nominations in 2008 for Best Breakthrough Artist and Best Female.

For her second album, Two Suns, she visited California’s Joshua Tree Desert for inspiration, before going to New York where she was influenced by bands like TV on the Radio, MGMT and Gang Gang Dance. The album is a concept album, telling stories about her desert-born alter ego, Pearl. This album was also nominated for the Mercury Prize, and also peaked on the UK charts at #5. The critical response has been quite favorable thus far, and has produced three singles already. The first single, “Daniel”, became a Top 40 hit.

She has an ever-revolving cast of musicians playing with her live; the latest lineup features English singer/songwriter’s Ben Christophers and Charlotte Hatherley and Sarah Jones (drums) of the New Young Pony Club.

I had never listened to them until I heard this album (Two Suns), and I have to say that I was extremely pleased. For the most part, the album is smothered with electro/synth/dance grooves, but even though that is the overall feel of the album (and each track is more solid than the next), each track feels different and stands out with the addition of a few instruments here and there. Erratic drum behaviors, faint harp strings, gentle piano notes, a little bit of organ and shaky tambourines add all that is necessary to seperate these eleven tracks from one another. But perhaps the loveliest thing you’ll hear on this album are Natasha’s beautiful, haunting vocals, which immediately brought to mind Caroline Polachek of Chairlift.

Other Artists I’d Recommend: Chairlift, My Brightest Diamond, St. Vincent, Kate Bush