The woman behind Bat for Lashes, Natasha Khan, has always reminded me of the opposite side of the coin from Stevie Nicks. If, as in American Horror Story: Coven led us to believe that Nicks is a white witch, then Khan is a black one. The Brit singer-songwriter-multi-instrumentalist burst onto the scene a decade ago with her debut album Fur and Gold. Her music had a ritualistic and ceremonial feel and sound to it. As someone from a mixed background (English-Pakistani) she has always felt the outsider and that comes through in her music. She makes PJ Harvey sound upbeat. In March she released the debut single, “In God’s House”, off the album and it showed that she had not lost her mojo. The song is haunting and danceable. It is a concept album about a woman whose fiancé has died on the way to the wedding and she decides to deal with her grief by going on the honeymoon alone. Love as death is an idea that is explored throughout. The result is a collection of beautiful songs about love and loss. What pushes the emotion through is that exquisite voice of hers. Surreal at times, it really lends itself to the telling of this dour tale. Dark and beautiful. Depressing yet appealing.
Bat for Lashes – The Bride
