My Album of the Week is Public Strain, by Women and you can win a copy of it by listening closely to this very show. After the uncompromising grit of their self-titled debut, Women return with their penchant for hazy noise in tact, yet a greater sense of melody and connection has risen to the surface of Public Strain. When the Velvet Underground or the Zombies conjured such thick, psychedelic textures and married them to charming, captivating voices, "art-rock" wasn't the going term for this distinctive, new, challenging sound. In a similar sense, Women don't seem to aspire to please anyone or meet any particular expectations with their music. The noise comes and they wrestle with it, put it on tape, and craft songs outta the wreckage. But real songs; that's where Public Strain shines. Women are at their most dynamic on this album, writing hooks and memorable arrangements within a noisy, punk-rock framework, like few bands in the world.
Are you a fan of Women? Are you planning on seeing them live any time soon or picking up a copy of Public Strain?
I have five copies of this CD to give away to the first people on the blog to respond with correct answers to questions I'll ask on the air throughout today's show. If this ends up being you (once!), please e-mail vish_khanna [at] cbcradio3.com with "Women are amazing" in the subject line, and your blog moniker and shipping address in your message.
Old or new, Canadian or otherwise, what is YOUR album of the week?
P.S. Don't forget to colour me in Moniski's R3 Host colouring contest.
