“Blue was the name my mother gave me,” sings Indigo Sparke on the opener. According to her own statement, the Australian with the poetic name had to work through a lot during the Corona period: a painful separation, injuries from the past. And so on HYSTERIA, the follow-up to her debut ECHO, she keeps falling into mantra-like incantations, repeating words and phrases like “Hold on”, “Pray” or “Set your fire on me”, as if it were about exorcising demons or to take courage.
Overall, Sparke overdoes one or two laps, but also creates uplifting choruses, sung with her crystalline voice. In general, there is a new power and diversity in HYSTERIA, produced by the busy Aaron Dessner. Already on ECHO the e-guitar rattled quite rough by folk standards. This time, Dessner has brought along a band, including drums, that provides both indie and country rock drama and velvety Americana ballads.
On the other hand, Joni Mitchell says hello on the title track, while Sparke’s beguiling vocal harmonies on “Blue” are reminiscent of British folk duos like The Staves or Smoke Fairies. A gem is the pulsating fingerpicking number “Why Do You Lie?”, which shimmers like stardust. And yet: A melancholic heaviness always resonates.
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