New England songwriter Lisa Papineau — who just happens to spend most of her time these days in Paris — is set to release her third solo record, Blood Noise, on October 8th via Neurotic Yell Records. The most recent in a long line of recordings, both alone and with various bands/artist (including Air, M83, Pet and Big Sir — her long running project with Mars Volta bassist ), this record acts as the culmination of Papineau’s avant-pop career and places her firmly within the musical lineage to which she has added so much. Wielding her mysterious and oddly inviting voice among airless and prismatic pop compositions, she condenses and integrates multiple genres (dream pop, folk, and indie rock) into a seamless and surprising whole.
On the first single, “Out For A Swim,” from Blood Noise, Papineau blends subtle tribal percussion and her own hushed and inviting voice to form a hazy, pop-inflected landscape of eccentric rhythms and desperately hook-y melodies. Much like the shifting instrumentation, her voice changes at regular intervals — introverted and communal one moment and brazen and fierce the next. You can hear traces of her vocal stylings in the work of artists such as Zola Jesus and Bat For Lashes’ Natasha Khan, but her music feels like such an insular statement of intent that any similarities are rendered moot by comparison. What is even more remarkable is that during the recording of Blood Noise, Papineau was recovering from cancer surgery and some of the songs on the album were recorded at her bedside, with keyboards and mics placed around her room. A hypnotic song from an artist with an intrinsic knowledge of the genres within which she works, “Out For A Swim” is a testament to Papineau’s determination and drive and is only exceeded by own natural talent and dramatic sense of creative expression.
Beats Per Minute is pleased to premiere the lead single from Lisa Papineau’s forthcoming record, Blood Noise.
