Dry - PJ Harvey

...and grown with each album, Dry is still fresh, strong and well worth a listen.

~~~Other info~~~
Available on Amazon from £6.85. I'm sure you'd find it in most good music shops too.
P J Harvey - vocals, guitar, violin
Stephen Vaughan - Bass
Robert Ellis - Drums, vocals, harmonium

Record at the Icehouse, Yeovil
Engineered by Head
Produced by Head / Harvey/ Ellis  ... more

~~~Still worth listening to 15 years on~~~
Today PJ Harvey's eighth album, 'White Chalk', is released and in anticipation of its arrival I have been listening to 'Dry', her first album, released in 1992. On its release, the album wowed the music press and was hailed as an astonishing debut worldwide. I remember, because I was 20 and living in France on my third year at uni, and the ripples touched even the uncool French music scene. I was so blown away by her, at a similar age to me she had produced an album that was not only great to listen to, but showed an intelligence and maturity beyond her years and promised so much more to come.

~~~The Artist~~~
PJ (Polly Jean) Harvey has been likened to Patti Smith. True, she shares with Patti the poetic lyrics, the strong, deep vocals, the longevity and I dare say that Polly has been influenced by the punk movement of which Patti was so much a part. I think she has a similar attitude to Tori Amos - she's upfront, not afraid to play with those images of sexuality, feminity and ambiguity (the album cover for 'Dry' has Polly pictured topless in water). It seems her new album, 'White Chalk', shows how far Polly has travelled from 'Dry', her debut. From the reviews I've read it's much more ethereal, gone are the loud guitars and the rocky riffs and cries; the picture on the cover has her sitting very stiffly, dressed in a Victorian style white high collared, long-sleeved dress.

Along this journey, Polly has demonstrated her keen musicianship, playing many of the instruments on each of her albums, and mastering the piano for her latest album. She has collaborated with many other artists, including Josh from Queen's of the Stone Age under the Desert Sessions project, which is another stunning album. She has also demonstrated her versatility having done some acting and published her poetry.

~~~The Album~~~
The album mixes blues riffs with noisy rock guitars, poetic lyrics with angry vocals, dark brooding moods and a element of mythology. It is a serious album and totally suited me as a serious 20 year old listener. 15 years on, listening to this album again, I am still stunned at how good it is.

There is a heavy broodiness about much of the album, with the guitar following and emphasising the bassline. 'Oh My Lover' opens the album with the lyrics 'Oh my lover, don't you know it's alright You can love her, and you can love me at the same time' to the sound of a single bass line. 'Victory' shares this brooding bass heavy sound and has a gothic feel, with the reference to storms, ships and 'delight dining at my table'. The album finishes with 'Water' which is either a baptism or a drowning.

But it's not all dark brooding. 'O Stella' and 'Sheela-Na-Gig' are faster, catchier, songs to bounce around and sing along to (or at least I do!), the former delivered with a slight 'twang' belying her Dorset origins, the latter with that daring, up-front, yet slightly ambiguous message. For those of you who've not come across one before, a Sheel-Na-Gig is a grotesque statue found on churches, particularly in Ireland. A bit like a gargoyle, intended supposedly to ward off evil spirits, the statues have an oversized vulva - add this to the lyrics 'he said wash your breast I don't want to be unclean' and you are under no illusions as to Polly's daring and directness. In a Tori Amos style, this is intended to leave you slightly uncomfortable, and it does.

It came as no surprise to me that Polly has published poetry, given the lyrics in 'Dry' and subsequent albums. Some of them stand in their own stead without music, in particular 'Happy and Bleeding':
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
She burst
Dropped off
Picked the fruit
And realize
I'm naked too
So cover my body
Dress it fine
Hide my
Linen and lace
Been sewing ever since time began
But more than the hills
More than the trees
More than the mountains-you
More than I can see
In front of me
More than the mountains-you
-Fruit flower myself inside-out
I'm happy and bleeding for you
Fruit flower myself inside-out
I'm tired and I'm bleeding for you
This fruit was bruised
Dropped off and blue
Out of season
Happy and bleeding
Long overdue
Too early and it's late too
Mind and body
I would and I would not do
- Fruit flower myself….
Fig fruit flower myself inside-out for you
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Another beautiful lyric can be found in 'Joe':
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Joe ain't you my buddy thee?
Stay with me when I fall and die
Always thought you'd come rushing in
To clear the shit out of my eye
Joe ain't you my buddy thee?
Lay my enemies out in lines
Come in close and I'll wash your feet
With my hair I'd mop them dry
Joe you be my buddy please
In this (hell) and (dead-lock) time
When I'm trussed in that headache tree
Cut me down with your knife
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Not only does Polly have a talent with words, but her song-writing, even in this debut album, is sophisticated. In both 'Joe' and 'Dress' there is a complex counter rhythm, whilst in 'Plants and Rags' there's a haunting key change and the song ends in a shambolic arrangement of strings that mirrors the dark message of the song.

~~~Conclusion~~~
Still a very strong album all this time later, it is serious, clever, poetic and daring. It is, however, also very easy to listen to. The broodiness and moments of quiet and noise are reminiscent of Nirvana, and are easy to listen to in a very similar way. Polly is a female musician to be respected, a role model for this reviewer, deserving of her respect and critical acclaim. I recommend you listen to her if you haven't already done so, and whilst she has developed and grown with each album, Dry is still fresh, strong and well worth a listen.

~~~Other info~~~
Available on Amazon from £6.85. I'm sure you'd find it in most good music shops too.
P J Harvey - vocals, guitar, violin
Stephen Vaughan - Bass
Robert Ellis - Drums, vocals, harmonium

Record at the Icehouse, Yeovil
Engineered by Head
Produced by Head / Harvey/ Ellis 

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