Black Belt Eagle Scout - At The Party With My Brown Friends

Nur 200 Exemplare als „3-color-striped Vinyl“ gibt es von „At The Party With My Brown Friends“, das am 30. August über Saddle Creek veröffentlicht wird. Es wird nach „Mother Of My Children“, das vor weniger als einem Jahr erschienen ist, das zweite Album von Black Belt Eagle Scout sein. Hinter diesem Projektnamen verbirgt sich Katherine Paul, die alle Songs komponiert, produziert und im Alleingang aufgenommen hat.

Die 9 Lieder der Singer/Songwriterin stehen zwischen zartem Indierock und gefühlsbetontem Folk, drehen sich um Liebe, Sehnsucht und Freundschaft und sind damit (musikalisch und thematisch) weniger düster und offensiv als bei ihrer ersten Platte. Nachdem bereits ihr Debütalbum von Pitchfork, Under The Radar, Stereogum oder Paste Magazine mit Lob überschüttet wurde, halten sich die Kritiker auch bei „At The Party With My Brown Friends“ nicht mit ihrem Lob zurück, so dass das Album bei Metacritic aktuell mit 82/100 Punkten sogar noch „Mother Of My Children“ übertrifft. 

However, despite the sound not differing largely from her debut, each track on At The Party... presents a distinct purpose, yet when considered as an album as a whole each track seamlessly melts into one. Album opener and lead single “At the Party” sets the perfect tone for what is to come. Touching on themes of self-navigation and escaping the comfort of family and friends, it’s a quintessentially sounding Black Belt Eagle Scout track: fuzzy electric guitar licks coupled with booming drums and ethereal vocals, whereas “Half Colored Hair”, arguably one of the strongest tracks on the album, is a tender, sparse love poem. The hook consists of Paul gently singing: “I never knew I liked half-coloured hair so much”, an intimate, affecting recognition of love.
“You’re Me and I’m You” closes the album and seems to be a contemplative reflection on Black Belt Eagle Scout’s sense of belonging and the similarities between her and her mum: “Just like you / She is my mum”. The contentment heard in this track conveys a sense of complete closure to the listener, and concludes the record beautifully.
(The Line Of Best Fit)

An album imbued with heartfelt sentiments, both expressed and inexpressible, At the Party with My Brown Friends is at once earnest, rippling with intensity, and a refreshing summer soundtrack. It’s a colossal forward-step for BBES, but one that keeps intact, and sees Paul’s unique artistic vision flourishing. Above all, it serves as a welcome and touching reminder that, in a global climate of political turbulence, intolerance, and bigotry, love and acceptance are critical.
(The Skinny)

That Paul is an artist defiantly unburdened by the increase in expectation brought by her debut is evident time and again. It's in the raw guitar on "I Said I Wouldn't Write This Song" and it surrounds the burst of energy lighting "Going to the Beach With Haley," a song inspired by a trip to the sea with Haley Heynderickx.
If there's a standout, it's "Real Lovin," a gorgeous track elevating Paul's vocals, playing like a hypnotic lullaby, proof she can slow and strip down her sound without losing vibrancy. When she sings "There's real love" over and over, it's impossible not to feel it.
At the Party with My Brown Friends is the sound of an artist changing without changing, picking up what worked and carrying it into something new. Searing less, simmering more, it lingers and lingers and lingers.
(Under The Radar)