Album Review: MONEY - Suicide Songs
By Chuck Greenlee, Contributor
[Bella Union; 2016]
Rating: 3.5/5
Key Tracks: "I Am the Lord," "Night Came"
MONEY’s second album Suicide Songs took a more of a loathesome turn from their first album The Shadow of Heaven. While the names of both records are equally depressing, Suicide Songs really takes things up a notch.
The album starts out with the song “I Am the Lord.” The entirety of the song is rather orchestral and sets a tone for the album somewhat akin to that of an epic adventure. By the third track, “You Look Like a Sad Painting on Both Sides of the Sky,” the album takes a much darker turn.
Lead singer Jamie Lee’s raw voice not only saddens those who listen to it, but is able to evoke the most melancholic thoughts lurking at the back of one’s mind. It’s able to capture the listener like a deer in the headlights as their mood progresses from happy to sad. Lyrics like “I will carry your death and I will speak your final words,” found in the song “I’ll Be the Night” have the power to make the audience realize how truly heartbreaking and self-loathing this album really is.
Although the album as a whole is impressive, one begins to feel like they are listening to the same six-minute song on repeat after a while. While MONEY is still a new name in the game, they will have to expand upon sad orchestral indie music to make an even bigger name for themselves in the future. However, what they’re currently doing isn’t bad by any means. If you happen to be looking to listen to sad, almost Disney-esque songs with cool, self-loathing, British undertones--Suicide Songs may be what you’ve been searching for.
