this is creepy as fuck on headphones in the dark. i don't think she's repeating herself at all, she's refining her bare-bones aesthetic
― lex pretend, Friday, 15 August 2014 09:49 (nine years ago) link
agreed, i've had this on repeat (sometimes alternating with Twigs). still don't like the first two tracks much.
― festival culture (Jordan), Friday, 15 August 2014 13:47 (nine years ago) link
after a couple of weeks of near-obsession with this i finally played her debut b2b with it, and it really stood out how much better this is - the songwriting, mood, close-miced creepiness all so much more refined and deliberate
― lex pretend, Tuesday, 2 September 2014 13:50 (nine years ago) link
she's pretty incredible live. not the slightest possibility of on-stage banter obvs. hopefully she'll be more talkative when i interview her today
"taller than tall trees" is a monumental song imo
― lex pretend, Friday, 24 October 2014 09:04 (nine years ago) link
Ask her what she thinks of Jussi Halla-aho, that should get a reaction...
― Tuomas, Friday, 24 October 2014 09:09 (nine years ago) link
oof just googled him. topical in the uk. is he one of those who makes explicitly racist comments or one of those who cloaks his bigotry? how much does he make it about immigration vs race? (yeah, even though we know people who say it's about the former really do mean the latter...)
― lex pretend, Friday, 24 October 2014 09:15 (nine years ago) link
and is he a Big Thing in finnish politics right now?
Usually he tries to cloak his racism into saying he's just anti-immigration (or "critical of immigration", which seems to be the wordplay Finnish right-wingers prefer), but sometimes it still shines through, he's been sentenced for propagating hate speech in his blog. He's not the leader of the Finnish populist party, but he's been the most prominent anti-immigration/racist politician of recent years, the actual leader of his party focuses more on other conservative issues, such as opposing EU. So yeah, I'd say he's been a Big Thing in Finland in that he's managed to elevate racist discourse from something that's mostly done by marginal groups onto the level of national politics. He was elected to the EU parliament in the recent Euro elections though, which means his influence on local politics should diminish.
― Tuomas, Friday, 24 October 2014 10:47 (nine years ago) link
Whoa, I was reading here Wikipedia entry, I had no idea "When The Cellar Children..." actually made it to the top of the Finnish album chart when it came out in August! That probably speaks more of the state of record sales in here (foreign pop/rock rarely makes it to the top of the album charts anymore, so odder stuff like Finnish Memphis-style rap can actually rise to the top 10 on relatively small sales) than of her local popularity.
― Tuomas, Friday, 24 October 2014 10:58 (nine years ago) link
Great interview, lex! http://www.wonderingsound.com/feature/mirel-wagner-when-the-cellar-children-see-the-light-of-day-sub-pop-interview/
― Johnny Fever, Thursday, 20 November 2014 16:23 (nine years ago) link
I'd just like to say I'm very into this photo of Mirel Wagner and I hope it means she's gearing up to release a new one soon.
https://i.imgur.com/3eJyjEG.jpg
― Ⓓⓡ. (Johnny Fever), Saturday, 14 October 2017 00:07 (six years ago) link
I hope there's a third album someday.
Any recommendations for other dark, soft, minimal singer/songwriter stuff?
― change display name (Jordan), Wednesday, 14 October 2020 18:02 (three years ago) link
Was expecting a Transylvanian Saxon man based on the name, heh.
I'd never heard of her but these descriptions sound intriguing. I'm assuming her debut is the best place to start?
― pomenitul, Wednesday, 14 October 2020 18:33 (three years ago) link
I'd say so, it's very special. I listen to the second album more these days, it really grew on me...it puts her voice & guitar in slightly sharper relief, but doesn't ruin the spell, just adds some subtle twists in the sound & songwriting. Also every song on 'When the Cellar...' is very distinct & memorable for me.
― change display name (Jordan), Wednesday, 14 October 2020 18:49 (three years ago) link
Thanks – added it to my list.
― pomenitul, Wednesday, 14 October 2020 18:54 (three years ago) link
Slightly disappointed that revive wasn’t for some new material. Agreed that third album is long overdue. Kelsey Lu is in a similar space, especially her first EP which is starker and less poppy than her album ‘Blood’.
― Dan Worsley, Wednesday, 14 October 2020 19:02 (three years ago) link