TORRES - what an enormous room Review
Delving into the atmospheric art rock of What an enormous room and its departure from stadium-ready sounds.
Eleven years on from the release of her first studio album, TORRES returns with her sixth record What an enormous room to flex her creative genius and explore the state of the human condition with atmospheric art rock. Though less stadium-ready than previous projects, and more introspective, this record packs a punch.
My star’s just on the rise, babe. A self-assured declaration heard on the album’s introductory track ‘Happy man’s shoes’, a gritty, pulsing opener that makes way for the brash and punkish ‘Life as we don’t know it’. The first half of the record deals with fear, anxiety, and insecurity as heard most notably on this track which is sonically reminiscent of a public panic attack. Chaos turns to calm on ‘I got the fear’, though not withholding the same sentiment. TORRES allows her vocals to shine here as she laments on the worry that’s “got [her] by the throat.”
Despite the threat of “loneliness, deaths of pets and parents”, TORRES begins to see the beauty of life on ‘Wake to flowers’, where distorted, janky sonics and a swaggering drumbeat soundtrack the sense of hope after suffering.
That nagging feeling of insecurity still manages to creep in, however. ‘Ugly Mystery’ deals with the fear of infidelity when settling into a new relationship, defined by strung-out guitars and vocal prowess. Likewise, ‘Collect’ is a dark and powerful reminder of TORRES’ own strength - she is a person who is going to take what she deserves from someone who doesn’t. Rage trumps rumination on this biting, noirish track that is undoubtedly a stand-out.
It’s at about this runtime where we really see a shift, both in terms of sound and feeling. ‘Artificial limits’, noted for its symphony of organs and sleazy guitars, is a brooding acceptance of death and the desire to live life to the full. Clocking in at just over 6 minutes, this is the record’s longest track and it takes advantage of that, building to a choral climax where “anything could happen now”. And happen it does - ‘Jerk into joy’ is an optimistic embrace of happiness in the face of adversity. This is a complete 180 from the anxieties explored earlier on the album, reflective of TORRES’ personal growth.
Throughout What an enormous room, we have seen fear turn into anger turn into joy turn into peace. ‘Songbird forever’ blends ethereal vocals with emotive piano and birdsong, the final track representing TORRES making amends with the duality of human existence; the pain and the joy of living and loving.