Label: 4AD
Review by Warren Mayocchi
The 1947 book-length poem, “The Age of Anxiety”, by W.H. Auden has been inspiration for a few creative works. Here the title and theme of the poem about industrialisation and resulting loss of identity is shared by the first album from Hannah Rodgers, a.k.a. Pixx. Her musical style is dreamy electropop – a distinctive English vocal accent, casual beats, and a slight quirk to the melodies. It is a style which works well, as proved by Sophie Ellis-Bextor, La Roux, Ellie Goulding and others. Four songs have music videos – “Baboo” [here], “Waterslides” [here], “I Bow Down” [here] and “Grip” [here]. If you were to pick only one from them to sample Pixx, have a look at “I Bow Down”. It shows the character of Pixx well in imagery, lyrical content, and music. I particularly like the growing energy and additional instrumentation as the song progresses. Another favourite is “A Big Cloud to Float Upon”. With a name like that the song is blessed already, it follows up with an intricate background and a big bass. Menaced vocals keep the insistent energy ever-present. Even though there is a lot going on in the track it has an introspective feel, perhaps reflecting the loneliness resulting from the rush of our lives. The isolation created by our increasingly social and connected world is explored in various lyrics across the album. For example, in “Romance” I particularly like, “You might expect me to see me on the inside/But I don’t really want to go/Some say it’s better on the outside/’Cause we don’t really want to know”. But there is no need to reflect on the deeper themes in “The Age of Anxiety” to enjoy the songs. There is plenty going on to keep the chilled out dancer in our daydreams moving.
Rating – 85/100
Tracklist
- I Bow Down
- Toes
- Grip
- Romance
- Telescreen
- Everything Is Weird in America
- Waterslides
- A Big Cloud to Float Upon
- Baboo
- Your Delight
- The Girls
- Mood Ring Eyes