Spiritualized: Songs In A&E

Spiritualized: Songs In A&E Spacemen 3 founder, Jason Pierce is back with his band Spiritualized's sixth studio album. Songs in A&E is the band's first album since 2003's Amazing Grace. The album's title and pathos come from Pierce's near death experience in 2005 after he had contracted advanced periorbital cellulitis with bilateral pneumonia with rapid deterioration requiring intensive care and c-pap for type 1 respiratory failure.[3]. A&E refers to the Accident and Emergency ward not the Arts and Entertainment network. With that said, it's easy to describe the album as morbid. "Death Take Your Fiddle" and "Sitting on Fire" sound like songs recorded from Pierce's death bed. There are breaks in the moroseness like "Yeah Yeah" where Pierce sounds like a deranged Bob Dylan circa Love and Theft. For the few raucous moments in the album, there are many many subdued tracks. The most poignant track is the eerie closer "Goodnight, Goodnight". The track features a brief excerpt from singer Daniel Johnston's Funeral Home, from his album 1990. It's sounds like the ultimate end-of-life song rather than album close. In the end, the album is a trip. It's eerie and well made even if it doesn't necessarily have a definite hit single. The album is the work of skilled craftsman marking an experience in his life. Rating: 7.0/10 MP3: Spiritualized "Soul on Fire" Buy: iTunes, Insound!