The Avalanches feat. Blood Orange
We Will Always Love You
Modular
It’s been four years since the release of The Avalanches’ second album Wildflower. So with the release of a new single, we should at least be grateful we’re not on the 16-year cycle between albums. That a new LP was forthcoming was hinted at via some recent cryptic Morse code messages about a new 2020 release for the group, generating some hype for this release.
We Will Always Love You is a laid-back, sleepy number that’s in a classic Avalanches style. There’s some soul sampled up from Smokey Robinson, with an Australian Boys choir chiming in to push the vibe further into the nostalgic zone – the kids’ voices tapping into those memories of a more naïve, childlike time, much like Boards of Canada did on their early, classic albums.
The main spine of the track is a sample from The Roches, a trio of singing sisters that started out in the 70s. Here their Hammond Song has their voices offering up their bittersweet melodies, the ooh-ing and ahh-ing dovetailing with the other melodic threads in the track. Devonté Hynes aka Blood Orange, provides the rather dour lyrics such as: “Draped in monotony/ What’s my life gotten me?” But the flow is heartfelt and meshes well with the other elements.
We Will Always Love You is a fine teaser track from The Avalanches, but hearing just one song makes you long for the more far-out kaleidoscopic journeys they are able to take the listener on, as on the two previous albums. Hopefully this first single will be a key element of the yet-to-be-titled new album’s tapestry.
PAUL DOUGHTY
