Diamond Jubilee
by Cindy Lee

This is interesting.... a two hour album with 32 songs... you normally don't see this anymore....

The first disc, I loved. Warm sound, variety in vocals and production. I think I get tired of it by disc 2... I think they could have benefited by boiling this down to one album or just releasing two separate albums labeled (Buy this one and Maybe buy this one). (Edited)

From corenfro 01/13/2025 01:49 | #306957 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

After all the nearly unanimous praise this received, I was hoping I would finally get it. So I gave it more and more listens, and I'll admit it: I just don't.

It's not bad, it's perfectly listenable, it just sounds like rather unremarkable repetitive music inspired by the '60s, especially the Velvet Underground. There's nothing here that captures my attention on that level. In fact, it’s rather boring. It goes on and on and on, stretching to a two-hour length. The unrefined production just sounded inconsistent to me, as the fidelity of the arrangement would change sporadically. Sometimes it was like, "here's a dry mix in your face and if you don't like it, you don't like INDIE," and then the next moment it has a lot of space in the mix while other elements sound grainy, with no cohesive sound signature.

A lot of it seems to drone on and on, never to the point where it's actively annoying or displeasing, but after all the hype, with the album consistently floating to the top of aggregate year end lists and eventually making Pitchfork's number one album of the year, I was hoping for at least a few musical moments, interesting songwriting, or anything at all unique or significant to appreciate or get invested in.

This feels like a really great 60-minute album waiting to get out. I'm all for good instrumental sections, but some of these were so repetitive that I found myself thinking, "Oh, can I switch to the next track?" only to look down and realize I was on song seven out of thirty-two. Just exhausting and homogenous. There are so many songs, yet it somehow feels like I am listening to the same track on repeat.

A sound that feels like a recycling bin of '60s and early '70s influences. A sound that is slightly more polished than what you might get if you typed all their inspirations into an AI, patched it up in a DAW a bit, and churned out two hours of sound, I would at least want it to do something interesting or truly captivating with that sound. And to do it more succinctly and memorably.

Maybe if I gave this seven more listens I would think it's a classic and change my mind completely, but I probably won't. There are too many measures that just go on and on and on, without ever going anywhere, that will be all I remember from my now four listens. I don't see myself ever listening to the same quarter-note bass line again and again and having a revelation that "oh my god this is amazing." (Edited)

From Cargusbralem 01/06/2025 14:47 | #306831 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

Many artists can make albums with a retro vibe, but I've heard none that quite match this one. This is just... peak. (Edited)

Diamond Jubilee is an epic of longing, sadness and joy. Across its 32 tracks it manages not only to hold such a high quality track for track, but also establishes and sticks to a clear musical identity. Tracks might vary in tone, instrumentation, vocal delivery or even whether there are instruments at all, but it all seems to come from its own place, separate to anywhere else. I've always been fascinated by the ability some artists have in creating music that seems to come from a separate world, I'm thinking of artists like Joanna Newsom or the Microphones/Mount Eerie here. The latter stands out as an example of an artist who can significantly change their sound (think of the differences between The Glow Pt 2, Wind's Poem and Dawn) whilst maintaining a clear musical identity, it all evokes a rainy and wild pacific north west with a kind of mythological streak. The same thing happens on Diamond Jubilee. Stone Faces into Gayblevision into Dracula should be jarring in how the tracks vary, instead the common feel of these tracks coming from a gentle but sad place holds them together. A lot is down to the production, nothing's allowed to dominate too much, least of all the vocals, which still manage to be the centrepiece of each track.

I found the record a bit much to take on when it first released, often listening to the first dozen tracks or so and then zoning out a bit more with time. Since the bandcamp release I've got more in the habit of starting at different points and familiarising myself with each of the songs. I really recommend this approach to anyone who's finding the runtime an issue. Some of the real treasures here are the instrumentals and it took me a while to really appreciate them. Olive Drab is bold and energetic, it feeds beautifully into Always Dreaming's harps; Darling of the Diskoteque evokes empty spaces and past times; 24/7 Heaven lives up to its name, it's one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard (it's interesting how this record focusses more on heaven where What's Tonight to Eternity, a record which makes this sound like the top 40, was more concerned with hell).

A lot's been made of the record's sadder elements, which it does evoke powerfully, but I also find it very romantic. There's a sense of love unfulfilled, by separation or otherwise, but the feelings of emotional closeness are still there. Tracks like All I Want is You or Kingdom Come are really good examples of this, they are ostensibly sad songs, but there's a warmth that comes through, either from Pat's vocals or the instrumental sections, which are often just as revealing. I've recently had to move away from my partner for work and there's a sadness to it, but in those moments of longing you have the time to really appreciate someone for who they are and there's a weird kind of joy in that. It's this type of conflicting emotion that Cindy Lee manage to evoke in so many different ways across Diamond Jubilee, a record that seems to take you to another place. (Edited)

Fascinating collection of songs that really piqued my interest on a first listen... definitely plan to delve back in... feel there's a lot to unpack and uncover... haven't come across anything quite like it before! (Edited)