Bonus disc

Bonus disc: No

Catalogue number

blackestcd015

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Colour

Colour details

Discogs ID

Format multiplier

Download code

Download code: No

Rough Trade Exclusive

Rough Trade Exclusive: No

Extended format

Extended format: No

Format detail

Format Music GB

Limited edition

Release date

2016-10-28

Signed copies

Signed copies: No

Supplier GB

Cargo

Tax rate GB

Standard:20

UPC / Barcode

5055869542814

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Total Cap

1 / CD / Extended format: No / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No

Artist

Carla dal Forno

Genre GB

Electronic

Label GB

Blackest Ever Black

Blackest Ever Black is a London-born music label that was founded by Kiran Sande in 2010. The label operated until 2019 and during its existence, it became known for its diverse range of musical genres and styles. Initially based in Berlin, the label later relocated back to London in 2016. With an impressive roster of artists and a commitment to pushing boundaries, Blackest Ever Black has left an indelible mark on the music industry.
Throughout its lifespan, Blackest Ever Black consistently showcased innovative and boundary-pushing music from various genres including electronic, experimental, industrial, and beyond. Under the guidance of Kiran Sande, the label cultivated a reputation for releasing thought-provoking and challenging records that pushed the boundaries of conventional sound.
With a strong emphasis on quality over quantity, each release from Blackest Ever Black was meticulously curated to offer listeners a unique sonic experience. The label's dedication to artistic integrity earned them respect within the industry and garnered a dedicated following of fans who appreciated their uncompromising approach to music.

Carla dal Forno is an Australian singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. She has made a name for herself as a member of the groups F ingers and Tarcar, and was previously part of the cult Melbourne outfit Mole House.

With her unique blend of haunting vocals and experimental soundscapes, Carla dal Forno has captivated audiences around the world. Her music draws inspiration from a diverse range of genres, including post-punk, electronic and ambient music.

If you enjoy artists such as HTRK, Anika, Exploded View or Jenny Hval, then you are sure to appreciate Carla dal Forno's mesmerizing compositions. Her introspective lyrics combined with her atmospheric melodies create an immersive listening experience that will leave you wanting more.

'You Know What It's Like' is an album for inbetween days, and occupies inbetween states: plain-speaking pop, disorientated by dub. Psychedelic folk delivered with (post-) punk economy. Drifting in space while still tethered to the ground. Astral tones blurred with earth sounds: wood, bone, breath, skin, dirt. Ending and beginning, dying and becoming. Longing for adventure and an unquiet life. Struggling to get out of bed.

This is Carla dal Forno's debut solo album, following time in cult Melbourne group Mole House and an earlier association with Blackest Ever Black as a member of Fingers and Tarcar. Her voice is an extraordinary instrument: both disarmingly conversational and glacially detached. It has something of the bedsit urbanity of Anna Domino, Marine Girls, Antena, or Helen Johnstone - stoned and deadpan - but it can also summon a gothic intensity that Nico or Kendra Smith would approve of. This voice is the perfect embodiment of dal Forno's emotionally ambiguous songs: their lyrics rooted in the everyday, observing and exposing a series of uncomfortable truths. This voice asks difficult questions of singer, subject, and sung-to.

And of course there are no simple answers. Singles 'Fast Moving Cars' and 'What You Gonna Do Now?' weigh up claustrophobia against loneliness, inertia against acceleration, doubling down versus taking off; the title track acknowledges the provisional nature of love and "real" intimacy, then decides to brave it anyway. By the time we arrive at the startlingly sparse 'The Same Reply', the impermanence of all things is something that can no longer be tolerated, and the sense of dejection is absolute.

The vocal-led pieces are interspersed with richly evocative instrumentals, like Eno's 'Another Green World' reimagined in shades of brown and blue. Smothered in tape-hiss and reverb, the seasick synthesizer miniatures 'Italian Cinema' and 'Dragon Breath' channel the twilit DIY whimsy of Flaming Tunes and Call Back The Giants. 'DB Rip''s drum machine and bassline are pure Chicago house, but then its dark choral drones nod to Dalis Car's dreams of blood-spattered Cornwall stone. 'Dry The Rain' drinks from a stream of eldritch, home-brewed moon musick that runs through Coil, In Gowan Ring, Third Ear Band, even the Raincoats' Odyshape, and into the woods.

You Know What It's Like

Music GB