Third time's the charm for Charlotte Gainsbourg, the famous French actress who has never been taken seriously in the music world—until now.
With her third album, IRM, Gainsbourg had the incredible forethought to partner with Beck as the album's producer. The two have collaborated to create an album that is at once electrifying and docile, fierce and benign, an album that is nothing short of eclectic.
One would expect no less of Beck, who has consistently wowed listeners since the release of Mellow Gold in 1994, an album that marks only the first taste of the hypnotic, wacky and at times twisted melodies that Beck Hansen has produced since then.
Gainsbourg, on the other hand, released a flop of a record back in 1986 at the age of 13 and then went on to release 5:55 in 2006, an album that did well in France but not so well here the in the U.S.A.
But with IRM, released under "Because this December," Gainsbourg (with Beck's obvious influence) has created something entirely new, at once quixotic and sentimental, sporadic and smooth.
The album kicks off with "Master's Hands", a song that starts with a bouncy rhythm and incorporates bass and electric guitar with Gainsbourg's breathy "Hey Hey Hey Heys" before she begins urging herself to "breath out, come alive" to be given "a reason to feel."
Interspersed throughout the song are sections of bass drum to wake us up if ever we are lulled to sleep by her sultry voice, and Gainsbourg's album answers her plea, providing its listeners with enough harmony and emotion to give anyone a reason to feel.
The title track "IRM" comes in next to declare Beck's presence. The song begins with heavy bass drum reminiscent of North African music, electronic beats and other unrecognizable sounds, along with Gainsbourg's bizarre lyrics including "Leave my head demagnetized/Tell me where the trauma lies," perhaps in reference to a water skiing injury that led her to have brain surgery back in 2007. This song leaves the listener feeling like she might after experiencing most Beck songs: awe-struck and head-buzzed.
Other notable tracks include "Greenwich Mean Time" which sounds even more Beckian, with its contorted vocals and general sound a-la "Girls" or "Qué Onda Guero" from Beck's album Guero. Probably the most obscure track on the album—the most forcedly influenced by Beck and the least successful.
"In the end" rings more acoustic and with the sweetness and clarity of a great singer songwriter's work, and "Me and Jane Doe" follows in the same vein two songs later (as does "Time of the Assasins").
Sounding a bit like Laura Veirs, this song has a surreal quality to it, acoustic guitar layered over what sounds like xylophone and spurts of drum. The quirkiness of the repeating lyrics "Me and Jane Doe and Rousseau" only amplifies an already wonderful song.
"Vanities" follows with a far more melancholy air and incorporates orchestra, as does "Voyage" later on, albeit with more energy and splashes of both French and English.
"Trick Pony" and "Looking Glass Blues" are a bit sassier, with harder electronic guitar riffs and Gainsbourg singing with more attitude.
These two songs serve to break up the sentimentality of the album and keep the listener from ever mistaking Gainsbourg for any other girl with a good voice.
"Dandelion" also features Gainsbourg's airy whispers, but is bluesier in its composition and features a whining guitar solo to break up any predictability. The song also incorporates moments of violin amid lyrics such as "Dandelion, tell me what you're thinking now?"
What I'm left thinking is: You've really got it right this time, Gainsbourg.