This week’s PBS Feature Album is Against The Dying Of The Light, the fifth release from Swedish artist José González.
Internationally acclaimed for his intimate, folk-rooted compositions, classically-inclined fingerpicking and softly expressive vocals, González’s Against The Dying Of The Light was born out of deep conviction as much as artistic choices.
As the artist explains: “For 20 years I’ve been doing music and for most of that time I’ve been trying to do stuff that doesn’t rub the right way. There needs to be some friction and I feel like this album is where it’s become more obvious. I used to write thinking of music that is timeless, but I allowed myself to be more inspired by current events, on a decade scale. My ambition was to have friction”.
The record’s sleeve art reflects what lies within. It’s midnight blue, with a square outlined in white and inside that square, delicate white patterning like that of a bandana – an image both subtle and stark, its aesthetic darkness chiming with González’s new sonic intensity. The choral element is markedly stronger across the new record, nodding to Argentina’s Christmas liturgy, Misa Criolla, and the Swedish mid-
winter celebration of Saint Lucia, with its communal singing in candlelit processions.
Tune in all this week to hear tracks from Against The Dying Of The Light. PBS Members have the chance to win a vinyl copy of the album - simply email your name and membership number to before midnight Sunday April 5.
Not a PBS Member? Join now!
TOP TRACKS WE'RE LOVING THIS WEEK
Carla Dal Forno - 'Going Out'
Steppers - 'Minutes'
Ella Hooper - 'I Got Eyes (On You)'
Horatio Luna - 'Spicy'
Alice Payne - 'Evolution (Free my senses)'
Courtney Barnett - 'One Thing At A Time'
FAIRTRADE NARCOTICS - 'Sway'
Rihab Azar - 'The Pull of Time'
Naná Rizinni - 'Familiar Stranger'
Thee Marloes - 'Under the Silver Moon'
