If there is one thing people who make alt rock love it’s nostalgia. That nostalgia can come from places like the art rock of the ’70s and scuzzy pop punk guitar riffing from the ’90s. For Adele H, her musical nostalgia comes from a period of time where we have no recordings. Adele H is nostalgic for what she gathers music sounded like from the times of the Romans, the time period those ruins we grow up seeing on National Geographic tv documentaries.
Civilization is 10 tracks of heavily melodic and heavily layered vocal music. It is a record that’s instrumentally sparse, with the exception of percussion, we more or less only hear Adele sing solo. Her instruments are her ability to loop her own vocals, creating rhythms by repeating the same mantra-esque line over and over. Civilization is a vocal record but it’s also an ambient one. These songs are unassuming and hypnotic, the entry point is more of the way Adele H sounds when she sings than the words she’s singing. That being said, the album’s lyrics are important and they are lovely. The lyrics in this album are equally nostalgic for the far past. Adele H strings together simple sentences about nature, her everyday life and how tiring life can be.
Civilization is a peaceful mix of songs that work together to create a record that is cohesive. It’s not a particularly difficult listen. It’s simple, kind of like the past Adele H wants to live in.
Keep up with Adele H here.
