{"product_id":"star-eaters-delight","title":"Star Eaters Delight","description":"\u003cp\u003eNew, self-recorded album by LA\/Virginia artist \u003cstrong\u003eLael Neale\u003c\/strong\u003e explores themes of transcendentalism, the polarities of nature and civilization, and healing via minimalist pop ala the Velvet Underground.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLael Neale\u003c\/strong\u003e still has a flip phone and there were no screens involved in the creation of her new record \u003cem\u003eStar Eaters Delight\u003c\/em\u003e. The album is her second for Sub Pop and reveals an expansion of her sonic collaboration with producer and accompanist Guy Blakeslee.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn April of 2020, in the wake of transformations both personal and global, \u003cstrong\u003eLael\u003c\/strong\u003e moved from Los Angeles back to her family’s farm in rural Virginia. Looking at the world from a distance and getting in tune with her own rhythms, she wrote and recorded steadily for two dreamlike years, driven by a need to make order out of chaos.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eForged in isolation, \u003cem\u003eStar Eaters Delight\u003c\/em\u003e is a vehicle for returning, not just to civilization, but to celebration. \u003cstrong\u003eLael\u003c\/strong\u003e says, “\u003cem\u003eAcquainted with Night\u003c\/em\u003e” (recorded in 2019, and released in 2021), was focused inward, amidst the loud and bright Los Angeles surrounding me. It was an attempt to create spaciousness and quiet reverie within. When I moved back to the farm, I found that the unbroken silences compelled me to break them with sound. This album is more external. It is me reaching back out to the world, wanting to feel connected, to wake up, to come together again.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAlbum opener and lead single “\u003cem\u003eI Am The River\u003c\/em\u003e” melts the ice with a dynamic explosion of minimalist transcendental pop clearly descended from the Velvet Underground’s branch of modern music’s family tree. Blakeslee’s spare yet cinematic arrangements create an ambient space in which \u003cstrong\u003eNeale’s\u003c\/strong\u003e clear and unaffected voice can explore familiar themes in an unexpected way.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSubtle but potent references to Shakespeare, Emerson and the Bible (which she hasn’t read) swirl together with deeply personal musings and touches of wry humor, always more optimistic than cynical. While this is a record about polarities- country vs. city, humanity vs. technology, solitude vs. relationship - the deeper intention is to heal; to come to terms with our differences and put the broken pieces back together again.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLael’s\u003c\/strong\u003e affinity with the Transcendentalists has to do with her quest to hold onto sovereignty over her own mind. In a time when our devices are constantly flooding us with information, opinions and propaganda, \u003cstrong\u003eLael\u003c\/strong\u003e is intentional about what she takes in - hence the flip phone and the cassette recorder. Neale identifies as a minimalist “not because I don’t like things, but because I value freedom more.”\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sub Pop","offers":[{"title":"Tape","offer_id":50447950250315,"sku":"2009196","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50447949693259,"sku":"2009195","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP","offer_id":50447951102283,"sku":"2009197","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/LaelNeale_StarEatersDelight_900px_1_65311a70_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727084466","url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/de\/products\/star-eaters-delight","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}