I was grateful to have the opportunity to interview both Chrissy Mostyn and Rick Pilkington on April 10th of this year. During that interview, these multi-instrumentalists, members of the Blackheart Orchestra described their new album Hotel Utopia, and what to expect. Now, the time has come on August 26, of this hot English summer, to release Hotel Utopia to the world!
The Manchester prog duo, Blackheart Orchestra, told me and their fans to expect an album themed around a “potential afterlife”. Rick Pilkington describes Hotel Utopia, this way, “All the 13 songs discuss the question of what happens, (or might happen), after our life on earth ends. Included within their first single, “Under the Headlights”; the song features spoken word from an ancient recording of a lecture by 1960s British philosopher Alan Watts. The music video for the song was shot a few feet from the edge of the 531ft high cliffs at Birling Gap, South Downs; which is sadly Britain’s third most popular suicide location.”
The Blackheart Orchestra takes a wide range of influences from artists such as Sigur Ros, Bat for Lashes and Bjork. Add Fleetwood Mac to that list after this review. Together they combine contemporary rock with electronica, atmospherics and classical styling to create a unique brand of ethereal art-rock that is laden with pop hooks and poetry, raw emotions and philosophy. They are frequently compared to such diverse artists as Cocteau Twins, early Pink Floyd, Portishead and Kate Bush, as well as contemporary composers such as Steve Reich and Philip Glass.
The band’s last album, released in 2019; Mesmeranto, reached #16 in the UK Indie Chart, #18 in the UK Rock Chart, #4 in the USA’s Big Takeover Albums of the Year, and was voted twice in the Rock Writers’ Top 20 Albums of the Year. The album received unanimous praise from the likes of Louder Than War, PROG magazine, RnR and No Depression, as well as gaining them recognition and applause from musical peers including Genesis’ Steve Hackett and Motörhead’s Phil Campbell. They won Best British Duo. They were voted #4 Best New Band in the UK. Chrissy was recently voted #5 Best Female Vocalist in PROG Magazine’s Readers’ Poll, and their lockdown online concert series The Big Armchair Concerts was voted #10 in Most Important Rock Events of 2020.
“The Tide”, is the album opener, and the second single off the record. It is one of the best tracks on the album, and probably my favorite. The music video is included here, and it wonderfully describes the development and feeling of the song. The track opens with Chrissy’s beautiful voice using cool harmonics, along with Rick, supporting with male vocals. Then a cool electric guitar rhythm and Chrissy sings the lead again, with Rick supporting. “Waves, crashing over. Like storms within my brain. Rain makes me sober, in time. To feel safe. On our backs, in the darkness. There’s no coming back. From where we’ve gone. On our fronts, in the shadows. Waiting for the tide to arrive”. The keyboards that follow, along with the clapping sounds, bass and soft percussion, make this song the perfect opener. An ethereal song full of waves of beautiful music.
“Under the Headlights”, is the first single and a deep song, full of meaning. It opens with stringed orchestration and beautiful keyboards, before guitar is added to the soundscape. Chrissy leads on vocals, “I have a fear of myself. But I’m not a danger to no one else. I am a captive of my thoughts. Like televisions, they haunt the dark”. A sad song which ends on a tragic bluff. But the music is still beautiful. The British philosopher, Alan Watt’s quotes are perfect. Chrissy sings, “Oh God, can you see me? No one can see me, because I’m all gone”.
“Safe”, is another of the best songs on the album. Chrissy sings, “Ha, ha”, as some cool electric guitar chords keep pace with her voice. Chrissy sings, “God come down from the ceiling. As the ghost dance in the evening. But I’m a tough crowd cause I’m seething with doubt”. Then she sings, “Where do you go when you’re asleep?” A very good question, huh? Some nightmare visions unfold as she sings, “Let me know, when I’m safe”. The guitar solo which follows is one of the best on the album. The keyboard\xylophone -like sounds are very cool and exquisite.
“The Warning”, opens with deep sitting bass chords full of ominous warnings. Then, soft acoustic guitar begins to fill the soundscape, just before pleasant keys reassure us. Chrissy sings, “Dive like a kite. Into the black and white. Feels like falling, like falling, ahh”. Another deep and bold song full of ‘searching for the answers’ lyrics. “Into the unknown, we all go laughing”, Chrissy sings.
“Astronaut”, opens with cool chords and keys, before Chrissy sings, “He’s gonna be a space man. A leave it all behind man. He’s running as fast as he can. He’s gonna be an astronaut. Way up in the high thought. Nobody can hurt him”. Like a celebration of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” and “Starman” all rolled into one. The dreams we all share to be great. A president, a hero; and for others to achieve it on their own, without interference; left alone, to celebrate by themselves.
“Alive”, opens with that cool rewinding sound of orchestration, like someone reviewing a tragedy, that happened to them, or they brought upon others or themselves. Then Chrissy gives us the answer with the lyrics, “Am I alive? I drove myself over the edge. Just to try, to catch a glimpse of what lies on the other side. To find out if I’m alive”. Chrissy sounds so much like Kate Bush on this song. It reminds me a lot of “Under Ice”. A very interesting review of what is important in life, that we would miss beyond life’s end. The piano and keyboard work is simply amazing, and the best on the album. Chrissy sings, “We’ll see you on the other side. Reminding me to stay alive. Because I’m alive”. Dark and eerie, but beautifully symphonic.
“A Dangerous Thing”, opens with soft piano and stringed orchestration. Chrissy sings, “It’s a four AM wake-up call. Its those bloody ghosts dancing through the halls. And I don’t expect you’ll understand. Because you’ve never been a haunted man. My love is a dangerous thing. It can ruin everything. My love is a walk in the park, in the dark”. Powerful, and riveting. The added saxophone solo is amazing! Another of the best songs on this album. Similar to a trip back to the movie, or book, Wuthering Heights.
“Casting Spells”, has more wonderful piano and bass guitar at its opening. Chrissy sings about witches and spells. Chrissy sings playfully, “Can you hear the witches in the wood, casting spells on us?” A fun and bouncing rhythm, like something you might remember from Kate Bush, with a dark side.
“Dust”, opens with soft piano. A more thoughtful, slow beat to it. A contemplative song, for sure. Chrissy sings, with some awesome programming involved. Rick described it in this way, “We decided to record the whole track at double speed and then slow it down to create a more mournful soulful vocal sound, that was in a way neither male nor female, we were trying to create a kind of ‘otherworldly sadness’. The darker vocal harmony sounds are my voice, again at half speed, which is trying to create the sound of a deep aching as if it was coming from the bottom of the sea or the bottom of a soul. Our aim is to try and interpret the inner feelings of human emotions through musical sounds, and it’s a really tough challenge to capture those spirits, but when composers DO achieve it – it can be utterly mind-blowing. My favorite examples are the first piano chords of Kate Bush’s ‘A Coral Room’, and the first three notes of Henryk Gorecki’s Symphony No.3, both of which have me in tears in an instant”. “After all of our lives, we will become dust”, “in the wind”, as Kansas sang. This song develops that theme well and with feeling.
“Atlantic”, opens like Kate Bush’s “Cloudbusting”; complete with the plucking strings and piano. You almost expect Chrissy to sing, “I still dream of Organon”. But instead, she sings, “I got inside, a fish’s mind. Taught me how to fly. Coming hard from behind. Look straight in the eye. Fell asleep in the Atlantic. Caught by a wave. Underneath”. Then she sings, “I woke up in another body. Silver limbs”. Chrissy really has some imaginative dreams. This song and others will help demonstrate that well. The guitar soloing is magnificent. There is a wonderful reminder of Fleetwood Mac’s “Empire State”, from Mirage, or the overall feeling from Tango in the Night, within the guitar work. The keyboard’s pace, and rhythm are just wonderful.
“Translucent”, is full of magical piano and keys, at its opening. Chrissy sings, “Don’t let it out. You keep it all in. Her translucent skin. You cut the cord. And lay beside her”. Then, all the powerful, heavier electric guitar and drums roar into the soundscape. The heaviest song on the album. Powerful images and music. Suicide, hallucinations and murder are the subject of this strong piece of music.
“Raise your heart”, opens with cool keyboard orchestrations, then fierce drumming and percussion, along with cool guitar chords. Chrissy and Rick sing “On our way outta here. I’ll raise your hands. I’ll raise your voice. I’ll raise your heart”. Working together as a couple to confront death as one. A powerful anthem.
“The Flood”, is the powerful closer I was hoping to hear. On his first album, Peter Gabriel wrote one of my favorite songs of his, “Here Comes the Flood”. Well, The Blackheart Orchestra are about to revisit that wonderful anthem, in their own way. Chrissy sings, “I heard the news about a flood. The big kind that covers us all up. So, I stayed all day by the window. Waiting for the rain to come. I saw a man about a fear, (psychiatrist). He said, hay, just lay your body here. So, I laid all day on his sofa. But none of it would disappear. So, I waited in the rain for the flood. And I gave all I had till I was done. And nobody came. And nobody sees what they have done. So, bring on the flood”. World’s end. A very good piece of music and one that closes this album well.
Every song on this album is engaging and different. With all the renewed interest in Kate Bush, this album may be perfectly targeted for release at this time. Chrissy sounds like her, without plagiarizing. Chrissy has her own sound, but it is a very feminine and intelligent, like Kate Bush voice. Very exact and precise. I tried not to disclose too much of each song’s meanings. As the songwriters wish for each listener to interpret the songs in their own way. But this is a marvelous album which touches on some very sensitive aspects of our human existence in a beautiful and musical way. Not too preachy, at all. Just right. Hotel Utopia examines aspects of life and death, and leads the listener on a journey of their own discovery. Like the Eagles’ famous Hotel California, it examines the good and the evil we allow into our lives, and what makes our short time on Earth, valuable to us. It examines the choices we make; all set to wonderful music that makes the listening and contemplation time that much more pleasant. Enjoy this album in its entirety. It is one of the best of the year.
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