If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Jack Manzi For those of us of a certain age, Belinda Carlisle's "Heaven is a Place on Earth" is a song that is basically part of our DNA at this point. It's one of those songs that I've heard an infinite number of times, and while I would never seek it out, I'm always pleased when I stumble into it. One thing I've never wondered is what a slowcore version would sound like, but once I heard Allison Lorenzen had made one I immediately needed to hear it. The upbeat 80's original has become this drudgingly slow and plodding track. All of the joy has been stripped out and left with an oddly beautiful rendition. It's lushly produced and filled with synthesizers and odd guitars, landing close to shoegaze but not quite there. You can listen to Allison Lorenzen's version of "Heaven is a Place on Earth" below. The song is available as a single on White Sepulchre Records. For more on Allison Lorenzen, check out the artist's Facebook...

Photo by Kyle Johnson When we receive music submissions the press release will often list genres the song fits into. For the latest release from Allison Lorenzen, the genres listed are indie, folk, experimental, and slowcore. It's an interesting blend of styles that fits "Mirrors" perfectly. As it starts, "Mirrors" could have just been a relatively standard modern indie folk song. It borders on mainstream folk, but strays just a little too far into the experimental side to go all the way in. And that's what makes this song so great and appealing. It's so close to just being a simply good, normal song that your coworkers could enjoy in the background, but Lorenzen doesn't allow it to go that way. It is just unique enough to be truly great and memorable with bizarre sounds like indie rock feedback that somehow fits into an almost mainstream folk song. You can listen to "Mirrors" below. Tender is due out November 19 on White Sepulchre Records....