Returning to his prior incarnation from guest string arrangement profligacy, Owen Pallett retired his Final Fantasy monicker just before the release of Heartland. He claims it was merely fear of litigation but there's something grander about this record that goes beyond Pallett's previous lyrical intimacy and honesty, although this being Pallett channelled through a story of a farmer's vision of the world of Spectrum who eventually realises someone else is writing out his life. Lewis Takes Action takes a "cockatrice" as its central subject. Such meta-allegorical depth frames a highly orchestrated arrangement, capable of switching from intricate pizzicato violin loops to full classical swells, dense and clever in sound with simple little melodies underneath. Songs build out of hook-like figures or little electronic revelations, taking its time (both with listener and arranger) to unravel into something grander and richly emotive while Pallett himself seems to remain coolly detached. There are few moments of bombast, more a series of neo-classical pinpricks envisaged in ambitiously excitable non-linear strings runs, insistent rhythmic aids and moments that gradually aim for the skies rather than rocket straight there. If it feels like the curtain has been pulled back a little, it's only in the Fantasia sense of seperating art from author - literally - to create something more technicolour.
[Spotify]
Lewis Takes Off His Shirt
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