It's been half a decade since the last one from these siblngs!? As you know, the last Penelope Isles record earned a rave review here. Jack and Lily Wolter have kept busy since then, with Jack's side gig getting some attention here too. Still, there was no chance that those efforts were going to be as cohesive and interesting as what this brother/sister pair make as Penelope Isles. And the same sentiment applies to what's on 3, the new record that's out this week.
Opener "Another Kind of Love" recalls site faves Ooberman and Super Furry Animals (at least the 21st century stuff), while ungainly single "I Loved You Robert Pattinson" benefits from some gnarly guitar late in the cut. Lily Wolter's lovely voice keeps material like "Birthdays" stuff that's easy to embrace, though the samples and production around her are quite good too. This is an airy sound, maybe a little looser than earlier Penelope Isles records if that's even possible.
Less a cohesive record than its predecessors, 3 is nevertheless a decent album and one full of scattered pleasures. Shimmering single "Thinking Seat" is one of the best Penelope Isles songs to date, and "Pretty in Pixels" is pretty close behind. And while those two are familiar in sound "Moonwalker" is full of riffage that's borderline tense. That cut suggests a less airy Penelope Isles sound. Still, the songs that work here are lovely, and the charms of this record are ones worth pursuing.
3 by Penelope Isles is out this week via Bella Union.
[Photo: Declan Haughian]