Monday, June 22, 2009

Another World

"Another World" - Antony and the Johnsons

1 comment:

Cyrus said...

About a year ago, I fell madly in love with Hercules and Love Affair, a house music collective of musical genius misfits swirling around the group's founder, Andy Butler.

In March of 2008, Hercules and Love Affair saved the soul of house music with the release of their debut album. They were able to bring together elements of '70s disco, early '80s dance and new wave, and late '80s acid house in such a brilliant way, that it's almost impossible not to feel the future relevance of each track.

The indie record review site, Pitchfork, named the single "Blind" as the best song of 2008. The strength of "Blind" is the shockingly refreshing voice of Antony Hegerty. To me, his voice is very reminiscent of disco legend, Sylvester.

Through my obsession with Hercules and Love Affair, I discovered Antony Hegerty's separate, more avant-garde project, Antony and the Johnsons. At first, I wasn't sure what to make of it, but I couldn't stop coming back to it.

I think "Another World" is a great introduction for anyone new to Antony. It is well representative in its intimacy and fragility and strength and honesty and complexity - all with strikingly minimal instrumental accompaniment. It conveys an inner world and universal space, in just a few verses. It's the kind of musical genius that comes around a precious few times in a lifetime.