Album Review: Teeth & Tongue - Grids

Melbourne via New Zealand chanteuse Jess Cornelius has been responsible for some fascinating soundscapes in the past, with 2011's Tambourine and acclaimed debut, Monobasic, in 2008 introducing us to a stark world where drum beats and tracked, raw vocals reign. It's a testament to Cornelius' ear for a winning formula that despite this lone girl territory being encroached upon lately by more young lasses in the biz, Grids still manages to sound familiar yet oh so different to them all, and adds the prettiest feather to the Teeth & Tongue hat to date.
From the very first breathy pout on Good Man, Cornelius captivates. With an almost theatre-like backed soaring vocal underpinned by thin key notes that are soon turned on their heads by that space-filling drum beat, it's the perfect first page to an incredible story. Single, Newborn, cashes in on a very catchy central motif, with that voice and organ reaching and dipping to bounce around a woody, percussive bottom layer, seeming to mirror the internal rollercoaster of lyrics “What do you want and want do you need, I don't know, it's not for me”. It's that struggle that's reflected so well throughout, musically and lyrically, helping lift this album beyond expectations. I Feel Good, for instance, uses a fascinating and ear-pleasing mix of raw piano and sampled voices to again evoke a high drama that leaves Cornelius front and centre where she belongs.
Grids is an album to be appreciated for its ability to present entrancing music by deceptively simple means.