Wales’ Cate Le Bon has a fourth album titled Crab Day, which delivers her most personal and musically consistent set of songs to date. The absorbing lyrics, consistent musical arrangement, and melancholic vocal interpretation make this latest recording exquisite. This is one of those albums that I wish had more tracks – nothing feels forced or overworked, the energy is right. If we can break Crab Day into musical categories, the record is a mix of contemporary European baroque pop, 1960s French yé-yé, and early The Velvet Underground. One of my favorite albums of 2016.

RIYL: Jacco Gardner, Bat For Lashes, Nico, Shana Cleveland & the Sandcastles, and Françoise Hardy.

FCC CLEAN!
Recommended Tracks: 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10

1. (3:49) **Crab Day – Out there folk rock. Great guitar work. Military beat meets 1990s prog rock instrumentation.
2. (3:02) *Love Is Not Love – Retro 1960s European pop exercise here. Killer guitar riff.
3. (2:36) **Wonderful – Medium tempo composition. Think folkloric European melodies meet 1960s French pop. Amazing song.
4. (2:51) **Find Me – Medium tempo recording with clever guitar and vocal arraignments. Exquisite 21st century pop.
5. (3:06) I'm A Dirty Attic – Bolero rhythm, 1960s French pop vocals and more clever musical arraignments. The cool Eurovision song that always gets eliminated in the first round.
6. (2:18) I Was Born On The Wrong Day – Piano driven ballad, part European folk, part early Joan Mitchell. Personal.
7. (3:47) **We Might Revolve – Medium-up tempo rock composition. Vocals and musical arraignments are immaculate. One of my favorite tracks on the record.
8. (4:03) *Yellow Blinds, Cream Shadows – Playful tune with pop tendencies. Solid track.
9. (3:25) *How Do You Know? – Another Cate Le Bon ballad. Vocal melody pays homage to Nico. Killer guitars towards the end.
10. (7:27) **What's Not Mine – Medium tempo track. European baroque pop at full speed. Somehow it makes me think of The Velvet Underground. Sick guitars. Great conclusion.