Youth Lagoon - Heaven Is A Junkyard (Album Review)
Friday, 16 June 2023
Written by Craig Howieson
Photo: Tyler T. Williams
With the benefit of hindsight, Youth Lagoon’s 2015 record ‘Savage Hill Ballroom’ felt like an ending of sorts. It was luscious and bold, and in many ways less idiosyncratic than everything Trevor Powers had released to that point.
Containing some of his most memorable songs and a series of entrancing instrumental interludes, it was an apt culmination of his musical journey, and when, in 2016, Powers announced he was wrapping up the Youth Lagoon project it seemed to double up as the perfect parting gift.
Although his solo output in the intervening years is not to be overlooked, the experimental nature of ‘Mulberry Violence’ and ‘Capricorn’ required an added level of investment from his fans, many of whom will have welcomed the news late last year that Youth Lagoon was to be resurrected.
Despite the use of a stage name, there are those who feel Youth Lagoon is the closest we have come to a representation of Powers’ true self, and based on the new record ‘Heaven Is A Junkyard,’ it would be hard to argue with that assessment.
The record itself came about as a result of a catastrophic reaction to an over the counter medicine, which affected Powers’ larynx and left him unable to speak. His imposed silence led him to write, and in doing so he has created a uniquely personal set of songs that paint a vivid picture of the fractured lives that both surround and fascinate him.
While his voice and piano are the constant throughout ‘Heaven Is A Junkyard,’ the quirky flourishes of electronics and synth baths that he has become synonymous with are still present and give a euphoric slant to tracks such as Mercury, where Powers ponders, “Does heaven glow?”
On the stunning Trapeze Artist, a chorus of backing voices and major chords hold aloft the line, “My voice is gone and it used to be so strong,” and it feels revolutionary. It is as though Powers has once again found his stride, and come to the realisation that almost losing what was most important to him has spurred some of his finest work.
Prizefighter is an arresting amalgamation of beauty and heartbreak. One of the album’s lightest moments musically, with one of the prettiest choruses of 2023 so far, it's hard not to feel the lump in your throat as Powers explains: “Tommy left for war with no goodbye / I never got a chance to ask him why / But since Tommy always was a tough guy / I know it’s cuz he thought I’d see him cry.”
‘Heaven Is A Junkyard’ is just as impressive as ‘Savage Hills Ballroom’, but it also leaves more space to grow. It is not concerned with finding answers or arriving at a specific destination. In that sense, in no way does it feel like a full stop. Instead, it's the anticipatory intake of breath before the second act.
Youth Lagoon Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Sun November 12 2023 - LONDON EartH
Mon November 13 2023 - MANCHESTER YES (The Pink Room)
Tue November 14 2023 - GLASGOW Oran Mor
Thu November 16 2023 - DUBLIN Button Factory
Fri November 17 2023 - LEEDS Belgrave Music Hall
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