British psychedelic pop band “Broadcast” released two singles for their final two albums, “Spell Blanket” and “Distant Call” on March 21. These releases will be their first releases in over a decade, with their last non-soundtrack release being “Broadcast and the Focus Group Investigate Witch Cults of the Radio Age,” a collaborative mini-album with experimental electronic artist, The Focus Group, released back in 2009.
The announcement of “Spell Blanket” came last year on Sept. 28, which would have been the late singer Trish Keenan’s 55th birthday, with the announcement being made by the single lasting member of Broadcast and widower of Keenan’s, James Cargill.
“Spell Blanket” releases on May 3 and is an album comprised of demo tapes recorded from 2006 to 2009 that were intended to become their fifth studio album, a follow-up to their previous studio release “Tender Buttons” in 2005, before Keenan’s sudden passing in 2011.
The single, “Follow the Light,” hints greatly at the direction the band was headed in at the time, with a heavier focus on hauntology, a style of music that utilizes cultural and societal aesthetics of the past.
While the song is somewhat repetitive, it maintains a light and dreamy feeling that almost allows one to get lost in the song, with repetitiveness falling into the background.
Keenan stays true to her unique style of cryptic lyricism, leaving the listener with the job of deciding not necessarily what it means, but more so what it means to them. It is a great tune whose dream-like quality is both soothing and intriguing, and it is exciting to finally see, at least in part, how Broadcast’s unreleased fifth album was meant to sound.
The second single comes from “Distant Call,” a surprise album announced the day the single was released. It is slated for release on Sept. 28, which would have been Keenan’s 56th birthday, and is comprised of demo tapes recorded from 2000 – 2006 from their third album, “Haha Sound,” their fourth album, “Tender Buttons” and their B-sides and rarities compilation album “The Future Crayon.”
The single released, a demo for their popular song “Tears in the Typing Pool,” gives a much lower-fidelity sound than the final release, giving off much more of a melancholic feeling while still retaining the mystique of the studio version with lyrics hinting at a sort of mourning, likely about Keenan’s late father who was dying of cancer while the album was being made.
Even if one cannot make heads or tails of the cryptic lyrics, it somehow manages to get its message of loss across, using its vagueness to connect with the listener over a universal feeling of grief. It is a beautiful song and remains a standout in the band’s discography.
Follow The Light – 7.5/10
Tears In the Typing Pool [Demo] – 10/10
