Snowglobe is the new EP from Jesca Hoop, which has had a limited pressing of 1000 CDs. Originally from California, Hoop has now settled in Manchester, and has received very positive coverage from British press such as The Guardian, Q and The Independent regarding her two previous full-length releases, 2010’s Hunting My Dress and 2007’s Kismet.
Haunting is perhaps an over-used term with modern music’s penchant for folk, dream-pop and minimalism, but Hoop’s work throughout Snowglobe is haunting in every sense of the word. There is a devilishly cool and detached aura to her work – a darkness and sobriety in the delivery of both the music and Hoop’s vocals – that sits alongside an intriguing ancient quality. Not just as a result of the lo-fi crackle overlaid on some tracks, but further within the subtle depth of expression and rootedness of her music. Stylistically, Snowglobe makes sense especially within the context of Hoop’s influences – she cites early folk, chamber music, old country and 20s jazz as key inspiration, as well as artists such as Tom Waits, PJ Harvey and Kate Bush.
The darkness of Hoop’s work is manifestly expressed through her lyrics, with topics ranging from the plight of the urban homeless within LA’s Skid Row to her own mother’s fight and subsequent consumption by cancer, topics which clearly hold a great deal of gravity and poignancy for the artist. These concepts are not lauded over however – they are presented delicately, with a beautiful degree of poetry and not a hint of the melodramatic.
Snowglobe is very much a thought-provoking and contemplative album, and is in essence sedate, subdued and sparse. With such a small amount of percussion used, and with little dynamics or instrumental versatility, this EP offers little corporeal stimulation, and is more cool and sombre than much of Hoop’s previous work. It is however still an enjoyable and pleasant listen, containing a large degree of beauty and intrigue within.
See this at TGA at http://thegirlsare.com/
