Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #22762 in Music
• Released on: 2006-09-18
• Number of discs: 1

From Amazon.co.uk
Look at Natasha Khan, with her Cleopatra shawl and elfish hair, on the cover of Fur and Gold, and you'll surely have this half-Pakistani, half-English songstress pegged as the first British riposte to the U.S. freak-folk movement that's thrown up figures like Joanna Newsom, Devendra Banhart, and Cocorosie. In some ways, that's an accurate comparison: Bat for Lashes has a way with mystique, one which elevates even quite simple topics-–the break-up tale of "What's a Girl to Do?"-–into grand achievements of ghostly trauma: "My bat-lightning heart," she whispers, "wants to fly away." Dig a little deeper, though, because the music to be found on Fur and Gold has a more complex provenance. "Horse and I," a harpsichord-led track embellished with theremin and a militaristic drum motif, is the sort of vintage-modern soundscape reminiscent of Björk at her most restrained, while elsewhere the dramatic tale-telling of "Prescilla" and "Bat's Mouth" suggest Bat for Lashes might yet develop into a songwriter of the poetic calibre of Kate Bush. The debut album from Bat for Lashes is a haunting, richly orchestrated work that, for all its experimentation and intelligence, is emotional and deeply moving. --Louis Pattison

Album Description
2006 release from this mature Gothic outfit. Bat For Lashes is the creation of Natasha Khan, a Pakistan-born, Brighton based songwriter. Her concept for Fur And Gold was to make something that started at dusk and finished up in the glorious sunlight. That gives you an idea of what this ethereal, cinematic album sounds like. Natasha's soaring howls, whispers and joyous singing are the main focus here. As beguiling as Bjork, as stunning as Sinead O'Connor and as dramatic as Kate Bush, it is her voice that dominates. The often minimal backdrop of haunting strings, unusual percussive instruments and drum machines provides the perfect accompaniment. Mature gothic sounds for those willing to be whisked off to beautiful faraway lands. 11 tracks. Echo.