Best known for their film ""Once,"" The Swell Season maintain their familiar emotive approach to music for their third album, Strict Joy.
Made up of Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová, the two musicians both have featured solo spots on the record. Though these moments of simplified expression are lovely, in synergistic fashion Strict Joy peaks when Hansard and Irglová combine their talents and make music together.
""Feeling the Pull"" is the prime example of this. In a short two and a half minutes, Hansard's boisterous vocals, swelling with each passing word, yearn for an escape, practically pulling the listener along with him to the bigger world he dreams of going, wherever that might be. At the refrain Irglová's shy voice harmonizes with the force of her partner, adding a sense of innocence to Hansard's barbaric desperation. They sing, ""And I'm feeling the pull / Dragging me off again / And I'm feeling too small / Against the sky tonight."" With these wishful lyrics set against a bold melody, Hansard and Irglová create a song for the dreamers like them.
Another song that stands out on Strict Joy is ""Low Rising,"" an Irishman's take on a blues song. Rich with passion and anxiety, Hansard's intensity screams for a beyond-necessary rise because he doesn't have any farther to fall. A heavy beat keeps the song moving at its somber voice, and the usual acoustic guitar is set aside for an electric guitar, which goes on a riff that communicates the same worry found in Hansard's words.
Classic Swell Season can be found in the first single: ""In These Arms."" A tried and true love song, the musicians create a quiet place of peace with Hansard's gentle guitar strumming and Irglová's sweet piano melody. During a song that one could easily picture being in their movie ""Once,"" in hushed tones the twosome suggests, ""Maybe I was born to hold you in these arms."" From here a series of instruments creates a wistful melody that floats above the foundation Hansard and Irglová are laying.
Among these and other songs on the record, the theme of love's end resonates throughout Strict Joy. This is no surprise, as the bandmates, who were engaged, split after the success of their film. Although they still make great music together, it's hard to ignore that they are literally singing about each other to each other. This fact makes the moments of the record when the two urge to find a ""love that conquers"" particularly poignant. Irglová mourns, ""Forgive me lover / For I have sinned / For I have loved you wrong,"" or when Hansard cries, ""Don't give us false hope / Back broke and crying"". If it weren't so beautiful, it'd be impossible to listen to.
Overall, Strict Joy changes little from what The Swell Season have put out in the past. Anyone who is familiar with and enjoyed the duo's previous work is sure to love the latest release. While Hansard and Irglová didn't mine very much new creativity or explore different paths to take, the album more than holds its own and is still magnificent Swell Season music.
