Single of the Week: Tune-Yards // Look At Your Hands
Merrill Garbus – better known as the mastermind behind experimental art pop project Tune-Yards – has one of those voices that seems like it would be better suited for someone with a completely different physical appearance (see: King Krule or Dusty Springfield). However surprising it is to see such power and soul burst from the mouth of someone who somewhat resembles a children’s story book character; it is the fulcrum upon which previous Tune-Yards albums, especially 2011’s “Whokill”, have balanced on.
In this respect, nothing has changed in Garbus’ creative vision. New Tune-Yards single, Look at Your Hands - their first in three years - shows off Garbus’ voice in all its well-known glory and versatility, but set to a new sound.
The instrumentation struts along like a conga line, with a punchy and punctuating bass as the lead. The melody follows close behind - its hands on the hips of the bassline, moving forward together in perfect unity. The line turns a corner at the chorus, and is joined by an ensemble of synthesizers drizzled with a harpsichord twang. Their appearance is short-lived, but a multitude of other sounds jump into the fray to replace them; a high-pitched, Theremin-like note that hovers above the second verse, and various space-age beeps and tones which play in the wake of the bridge, rounding out this mischievous track.
The new Tune-Yards album, I Can Feel You Creep Into My Private Life is due out January 19, 2018. Check out the music video for “Look at Your Hands” below.
