[usr 8.0 text=true]
REVIEW – The long rumored PJ HARVEY demos are here. This has been a rumor among the fanbase for over a decade plus. At first, we were told by certain reports that we were going to get a deluxe edition to her 3rd album, To Bring You My Love. To most alternative music fans, this is the album that got Polly Jean in the spotlight. The video for Down by the Water came out and was picked up by college radio and 120 Minutes. Unlike past releases like Dry and Rid of Me, this one was geared towards commercialism and selling the image. I know some will be fast to try and correct me and say, “Well, what about Rid of Me or 50 Foot Queenie?” While those songs were also geared towards radio, I feel that their videos or lyrics were not as catchy as Down by the Water. I feel that the 3rd album was the make or break for her. I feel when you listen to the demos going into this cd, you feel that same desperate intense vocal approach. Where she ditched most of her heavier tones off of past releases, this one was more bluesy and scarily religious. The song structures of the demos show that a ton of thought went into the studio with her notebook. This release sheds all the glamour and strips away the polish, and gives us such an intimate look into her soul.
I feel songs like “Long Snake Moan” and “C’Mon Billy” sound very lackluster. I feel that the studio made these songs very special and the demos showcased that she needed that production and power. Now, not all the roses are faded. Down by the Water, is a gem on this cd. While the original version may have had fans yelling, “sell out” when they first heard it in the 90’s. This stripped down demo is so personal and raw, it cuts to your bone by the end. It is very powerful and intimate. It was like a french kiss of the sweetest secret taboo. Send his Love to Me, another song that really sounds both fresh and new in this setting. It comes across as this obsessive longing that grips you by the throat and never lets you off the hook. So, the title track which for years I have said is her best song ever. This demo is flat out amazing but is also a cheat. This demo version was originally put out in 2010 as an in-studio present as we waited for Let England Shake. I feel that the music scene has changed so much. If this was 1997, remastered and deluxe cds would sell so much more. Demo cds would be a much bigger deal as well. PJ HARVEY I feel in 2020 has an upward fight to get a dent in the music scene. I mean, we have artists who are here today and gone today. (How many people bought the new Alanis Morrisette cd? 25 years ago, she sold 20 million cds and could sell out a show in 11 minutes. Today, she is lucky to even be a footnote in a review in a dying publication.) PJ HARVEY is one of those artists that I feel could make a comeback and change the rules of college alternative. Will she? Fuck, if I know. She is the Vincent Gallo of music. She will put out a new cd someday and critics will praise her till the next review in their stack. I like this record a lot, it has a few bumps in the road as well. I feel fans of her can forgive her for the bumps. If you are new to Polly, I feel this cd could be a great start. This set of demos could open up fans to explore her release from 1995.
For more information on PJ HARVEY, visit:
www.PJHarvey.net
www.Facebook.com/PJHarvey
www.Instagram.com/PJHarveyOfficial
www.Twitter.com/PJHarveyUK
www.YouTube.com/PJHarvey
www.Soundcloud.com/PJ-Harvey
Play.Spotify.com/PJHarvey
