From the lo fi fuzz of opening track Little Arrow, Big Thief’s debut marks a descent into its sweetly perturbed depths clearly. The world of Masterpiece is emotionally charged and deceptively complex for indie rock, but never melodramatic. It’s an honest and disarming account of the pain that comes with the gradual erosion of innocence and love.
There’s no doubt that Adrianne Lenker and company are incredibly talented, and it’s the musical content that really acts as the frame that encompasses Lenker’s beautifully brutal tales. Real Love is the track that perhaps best exemplifies the album as a whole. As a raw lament on the continuous circle of violent, volatile relationships, it juxtaposes an early example of feuding parents and an onslaught of horrible experiences that rust hardened layers around a sensitive heart. It’s a stark reminder of the confused horrors that can manifest when you find both pain and love to be mutually inclusive. The guitars continuously swell like an aching blister, ascending from tragic twang to hot, stingingly angry thrashes – but it never gives the satisfaction of bursting, providing no relief to the uncomfortable bitterness.
This artistic direction is both the point and the problem with the album and it can feel hopelessly paralysing. If you’re brave enough, Masterpiece will leave you soberingly tender. This is an album that frays the nerves, but in a cathartic way. It may not be what you want, but it’s good at what it does.
BY JACOB COLLIVER
