L'Rain is the debut studio album by experimental musician Taja Cheek, who performs as L'Rain.[1][2] The album was released in 2017 by New York City-based label Astro Nautico[3][4] and included in best-of-year lists by publications including Pitchfork[5] and Bandcamp Daily.[6] The album cover is an image of Cheek's forearm, which is tattooed "L'Rain"; she chose the name after her mother, Lorraine, died during the making of the record.[2]
| L'Rain | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 15, 2017 | |||
| Genre | Experimental | |||
| Label | Astro Nautico | |||
| Producer |
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| L'Rain chronology | ||||
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L'Rain features Andrew Lappin on guitars, Alex Goldberg on drums and percussion, Jeremy Powell on saxophone, and TV on the Radio's Kyp Malone on backing vocals.[7] Cheek composed and performs vocals, keyboards, synthesizers, guitar, bass, samples, and percussion on the album,[8] which she co-produced with Lappin.[7]
Musical style
editL'Rain has been recognized as an experimental album drawing on many traditions and genres;[5][1] reviewers have identified the work's style and influences as including free jazz, ambient, noise music, and disco;[3] R&B, post-punk, and avant-garde rock;[1] shoegaze, psychedelic, hip hop, and outsider music;[7] jazz, electronic music, and dream pop;[8] soul and folk;[6] and more.
L'Rain often layers and loops her vocals, and her work frequently features samples from her collection of hundreds of field recordings, some pitch-shifted or otherwise manipulated beyond recognition.[2] She has spoken in interviews about her work's tendency to evade[2] or reject[1] categorization, and in an interview following the debut's release said, "I would hope that people would find elements of gospel, 90s r&b, and different genres of 'experimental music' (for lack of a better term) in my music, but I generally try to remain as illegible as possible. There is power in remaining indiscernible. I like to exist in a liminal space."[9]
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Pitchfork | 6.8/10[3] |
Jay Balfour for Pitchfork assessed L'Rain with general positivity, calling it "a beautiful, untidy conduit of [Cheek's] grieving."[3]
Year-end lists
edit| Publication | List | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Pitchfork | The 20 Best Experimental Albums of 2017 | #17[5] |
| Bandcamp Daily | The Best Albums of 2017 | #10[6] |
Track listing
editAll songs by L'Rain.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Heavy (But Not in Wait)" | 4:53 |
| 2. | "Stay, Go (Go, Stay)" | 4:42 |
| 3. | "Bat" | 2:22 |
| 4. | "Alive and a Wake" | 2:28 |
| 5. | Untitled | 0:36 |
| 6. | "A Toes (Shelf Inside Your Head)" | 3:03 |
| 7. | "Go, Stay (Stay, Go)" | 1:00 |
| 8. | "July 14th, 2015" | 0:23 |
| 9. | "Which Fork / I'll Be" | 6:58 |
Personnel
editAdapted from the record's Bandcamp page.[10]
L'Rain
- Taja Cheek - vocals, bass guitar, electric guitar, percussion, samples, synths
Additional musicians
- Alex Goldberg - drums, percussion
- Andrew Lappin - acoustic guitar, electric guitar, nylon guitar, percussion, programming
- Jeremy Powell - saxophone
- Kyp Malone - background vocals
Technical
- Taja Cheek - production
- Jake Aron - mixing
- Chris Connors - additional mixing, vocal editing
- Chris Gehringer - mastering
- Andrew Lappin - engineering, mixing, production
- Sam Obey - A&R, remix mastering, sequencing
Artwork and design
- Jed Moch - album artwork
- Carlos Reyes - album artwork
References
edit- ^ a b c d Fraden, Angel E. (February 26, 2018). "Meet L'Rain, the Mystic Multi-Instrumentalist and Vocalist Whose Intimate Music Will Mesmerize You". Teen Vogue. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
- ^ a b c d Pareles, Jon (June 24, 2021). "L'Rain's Songs Hold Ghosts, Demons and Healing". The New York Times. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
- ^ a b c d Balfour, Jay (September 28, 2017). "L'Rain: L'Rain". Pitchfork. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
- ^ Kuhn, Bennett. "Labeled: Astro Nautico". Impose Magazine. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
- ^ a b c Geffen, Sasha (December 15, 2017). "The 20 Best Experimental Albums of 2017". Pitchfork. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
- ^ a b c "The Best Albums of 2017: #20 – 1". Bandcamp Daily. December 15, 2017. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
- ^ a b c Schube, Will (September 8, 2017). "L'Rain's Debut Album Is A Rollercoaster Ride of Soul, Shoegaze, and Dance". Bandcamp. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
- ^ a b Berlatsky, Noah (September 4, 2017). "Music on the Horizon". Splice Today. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
- ^ Bourgeois, Jasmine (November 2018). "In Conversation with L'Rain". Tom Tom Magazine. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
- ^ "L'Rain (Deluxe Edition)". Bandcamp. Retrieved July 9, 2021.