Masseduction by St Vincent

Masseduction is the fifth album by alternative pop artist St Vincent – real name Annie Clark. It’s a showcase for her varied approaches to creating great music and never fails to deliver the goods.

I had no prior experience with any of St Vincent’s music before hearing Masseduction. Within the first couple of songs, certainly by the time I heard the eponymous track, I was hooked.

She displays a diverse range of styles that come through on this album, many of which echoed in my mind back to artists past and present.

I couldn’t help but get Alanis Morissette vibes from the album’s second song – the energetic ‘Pills’. ‘Pills’ is super catchy and could have settled in that groove for the whole song. But, in what I’ve now come to expect from her, she switches up the tempo and style two thirds in.

These changes, which happen in a few of her songs, are hugely effective and was really a gateway drug into St Vincent’s music for me.

Then once the title song ‘Masseduction’ dropped… I just lost my shit.

‘Masseduction’ is the album’s third song, and plays like a love letter to Prince. Everything from the song’s title; to the distortion-heavy guitar licks; and through the song’s funky beat. But in no way is it a cheap knock-off. On the contrary – since Prince, and other great heroes of music, have recently passed – we are in dire need of great idiosyncratic artists to stand up for good music. St Vincent is a part of that army.

The album continues through further belters, ‘Sugarboy’ and ‘Los Ageless’, that keep the energy up high without ever becoming tiresome. The music video for the latter enhances another aspect of St Vincent I find compelling – her visual style through the album’s artwork.

The artwork for this album seems to further support the sound she is going for. With its glossy, vibrant colours and sharp edges, but with cryptic imagery that conceals a deeper message beneath the shiny plastic.

The album closes its first half with the stripped back, and welcome, piano ballad ‘Happy Birthday, Johnny’. With the removal of nearly all instruments but for a piano along with her voice, we get up close and personal with her. This departure from the previously up tempo tracks serves to give an extra layer to her message. Here she is pealing back the shiny cover to expose the heart beneath. And the result with this song is a gorgeous ballad that tugs at those heart strings.

Just when I thought I’d heard her at her most energetic, along came ‘Fear the Future’ – a frantic piece backed by the craziest beats on the album. If I’m honest, the dance music style that is informing this song isn’t a style I would choose to listen to. And while it’s not nearly my favourite song on the album, Annie still makes it work within the context of this gorgeous, neon pick and mix of an album. (I have no idea what neon pick and mix means – I just thought it sounded cool in my head).

The album’s closing song, ‘Smoking Section’ is definitely my favourite on the whole album. It feels like one of the most personal of the collection too, with some real guts to it. The drum / low-synth fills that hit the song in two places, have such a deep guttural punch to them. These short riffs were reminiscent of something by The White Stripes to my ears. But just as soon as the one-two punches have landed, she switches the song up from melancholic to hopeful with the repeated lyric “It’s not the end”. Her voice fading into the ether as she does.

While never faltering from her own path, St Vincent manages to dip her toes into a good variety of styles for this album. I am completely mesmerised by every song and probably will be for some time to come. A lot of pop music is much of a muchness to me nowadays but people like St Vincent keep the flag flying for introspective, thought provoking music with hidden depths.

If you want to increase the overall quality of your music collection, then pick up Masseduction by St. Vincent now.

Too alive – Thoughts on the game Outlast

Dark, disturbing and utterly terrifying. I don’t think I’ve been quite so scared playing a game than I have been with Outlast. It came to a point where being killed was a blessed relief from then suspended tension. Things were always going to get bad for our hero, I just didn’t foresee how bad things would get.

What is Outlast about?

In Outlast you play Miles Upshur, an investigative journalist who is looking for his story within the walls of the Mount Massive psychiatric hospital. He has been given a tip-off from a whistleblower within the Hospital about some shady goings on. It is here that you begin the story – parked up outside and looking for a way in. But of course It’s not long until things go pear-shaped and your quiet entrance becomes a frantic search for escape.

The game is played from the first-person perspective of Miles. Seeing it through his eyes really added to my emotional investment of it all. With all the lights turned off in my living room, the small shafts of light in-game were my only illumination.

The further through the hospital you advance, the more dark and twisted the story becomes. So too do the creatures searching for you in the dark become harder to best. Made excruciatingly difficult at times with the complete inability to fight back.

An inability to fight back.

One big aspect of Outlast, that sets it apart from most, is in its fighting mechanics… or complete lack thereof. It is impossible to fight back or even defend yourself in Outlast – all you can do is run, hide and try to sneak past whatever lurks in the darkness. This fundamental rule is what makes this game so unique in all the games I’ve played. Other horror games, like Silent Hill and Resident Evil, allow you to collect weapons and ammo in order to at least try and fight back. However, in Outlast, you must use only your wits, and more often than not your cowardice, to survive.

Throughout the halls of the quickly-deteriorating hospital, you’ll find all manner of places to hide. Under beds; behind up-turned mattresses; toilet cubicles; lockers. One time I even found myself staring directly at my enemy, only under the cover of the pitch black. These hiding places aren’t guaranteed sanctuary though, as those hunting you won’t think twice about tearing a door from a locker or searching under beds.

Because of the zero fighting, all of the controls you play with are geared towards your movements. Whether it be glancing behind you as you sprint away from a pursuer, peering round a dimly-lit corner, or creaking a door open as slowly as you can. Opening a door is actually one of the initial things that got me so immersed in the game. You have the option of just opening the door normally, which results in a thud, or holding down the button and easing forward with the controller’s analogue stick.

Utterly Terrifying

No game has made me so consistently scared of playing it than Outlast did. There was never a moment when I felt any degree of safety, with every room and corridor serving only to raise my fear and anxiety levels. The amount of times I went into it saying “it’s only a game – if I die I can just try again.” was many. But I simply couldn’t disengage from the game on an emotional level. In times between playing it I’m sure part of me staying there – trapped inside the hospital with Miles.

With the game being split into chapters, I found myself unwilling to play past more than one at a time. The constant state of tension really took its toll on me after a while. Although saying that I did do the last three chapters in one sitting, which I’m actually pretty proud of.

I’ve talked about the darkness and the things that lurk within, as well as your complete lack of defences. But fear not, for you do have one item by your side throughout your time at Mount Massive that may just save your life – your video camera.

Just a man and his camera

Your only accessory that you take with you on your journey is a digital camera with its night vision mode. This camera is your only friend in the dark, often pitch black, hallways you find yourself exploring. I found myself, at least half of the time I was playing, with the camera up to my face – night vision turned on. One memory that sticks with me is being trapped in a prison area, all prison cells opened, with a huge bulking creature searching for me. Using the camera to search the blackness was the only thing that got me out of there.

But the camera’s battery won’t last forever, which is why you should always be keeping an eye open for the game’s only consumable items – extra batteries. The game doesn’t really make the prospect of exploring every nook and cranny inviting. But I strongly advise you to look around for those batteries. Luckily I never ran out of them but there were many times when I came damn close.

As well as batteries you’ll also come across numerous documents, which shed some light on the history of the hospital and what went on before your arrival. These are an interesting read if you want to deepen your understanding. If not, just run.

Not for the faint hearted

If you are of a nervous disposition you will NOT want to play this game. I’m not easily spooked but this game had me in a constant state of anxiety. Sometimes to be caught and have your heart ripped out is a nice way to break that tension… sometimes. All in all I really enjoyed this game, but it’s a game that look back at with enjoyment – when I was experiencing it I was petrified.

It’s for this reason that I can’t decide whether I want to play the Whistleblower DLC and the recently-released sequel. I mean I want to… but do I really want to?

Don’t say you haven’t been warned.