Meg Myers - Take Me To The Disco

Dass Meg Myers als Teenager mit Grunge aufgewachsen ist, hört man dem Song „Numb“, der mit seiner Laut/Leise-Dynamik an Nirvanas „Smells Like Teen Spirit“ oder auch Radioheads „Creep“ denken lässt, an. Zudem dient dieser Song als Abrechnung für den wenig erfreulichen Schritt vom Major Label Atlantic, das ihr Debüt „Sorry“ vor 3 Jahren veröffentlichte, zum Indie-Label 300 Entertainment:

I hate the feeling of this weight upon my shoulders
Pushing the pressure down on me
You think you want the best for me but nothing really matters
If you force it won't come, I guess I'm feeling numb

Auf den übrigen Songs zeigt sich Meg Myers weiterhin düster, dramatisch und wütend, aber nicht so rockig und aufbrausend wie auf dem Album-Highlight „Numb“. Viel Piano, gelegentlich wummernde Beats und jede Menge Keyboard-Wände haben mit der im Albumtitel erwähnten Disco zwar nichts zu tun, lassen das ein oder andere mal an bombastische Pop/Rock-Produktionen der 80er Jahre denken. Etwas aus dem Konzept fallen zudem „The Death Of Me“, ein Duett mit Christian Langdon, „Some People“, der Versuch Enya-Klänge zu entkitschen (auch wenn sonst eher Namen wie Fiona Apple, Alanis Morissette und Sineád O’Connor fallen müssten), und das abschließende „Constant“, das nur auf Streicher und akustische Gitarre setzt. 

The brilliance behind Take Me To The Disco is that its a gradual bloom. At first it seems so effortlessly rebellious, as if freeing yourself is as simple as saying it, yet as it goes on, it doesn't lose sight of the freedom but gains an understanding of it. Tracks like 'Tourniquet' with its big, spiraling, and haunting tone and 'Little Black Death' provide those moments of realization where it's not as simple as it seems, but that doesn't prevent Myers from going forward. Tracks like 'The Death Of Me,' where she has a wonderful duet with Christian Langdon, and 'Done' with its infectious swagger show that. Yet, it's tracks like 'I'm Not Sorry' that make Take Me To The Disco's story feel real: the quiet piano track cries out to be wanted, even when freedom is what Myers hunted for for so long. That feeling of belonging can never truly be escaped no matter how hard you try Add everything together, and you come to the stripped down end of 'Constant,' which ends uncertain but hopeful, Myers realizing "maybe I'm not alone in this constant side."
Meg Myers takes control of her life in Take Me To The Disco, following an uncertain path to a freedom of love, but surely enough being roped back into it at times even when at her peaks. There's joy and there's desperation on this record; Myers holds nothing back. It's an honest journey, and that's where its power comes from.
(Immortal Reviews)

The superb "Take Me to the Disco" finds Myers angry, anguished, raw and obsessed with mortality. Take just three song titles from the rocker's sophomore album: "The Death of Me," "Little Black Death" and "Funeral." Oblivion is never very far on the 12-track album. In "Tear Me to Pieces," she notes: "The rapture's trying to kill me." On "Done," she vows to "rip right through your beating heart."
Myers definitely isn't fooling around, and there's no denying the woman's sheer talent, both as a songwriter and as a singer who can go from kittenish to face-melting in the same song. (…)
"Little Black Death" might be the closest to a disco song Myers has on the new album - a techno banger with lyrics in the grave - but we didn't come to dance. We came to bow before a genuine rock goddess.
(Reading Eagle)