New Zealand songwriter Reb Fountain is an artist you may know without even knowing. From successful albums and award-winning TV scores to touring with the likes of Crowded House to being the woman behind Save Our Venues NZ and Artists for Ceasefire NZ, Reb Fountain is a force. And now she’s back with her third album How Love Bends – a haunting and evocative exploration of love.
“Love is a first kiss, a late night call, an ache of longing that can break your heart or a long drive with the top down to anywhere but here. Love can equally be contained, repressed and longed for as much as it can save, nurture and embolden. Love is a measure of our humanity or how lost we have become.”
Reb Fountain
Described as folk-noir, How Love Bends is a stunning juxtaposition of atmospheric melancholy and overarching positivity, as Reb tours the complexities of love and the human condition; how it connects us and how it moves and changes.
“The way in which I perceive the world and myself changes over time to the degree to which I am prepared to allow it to change.”
Album opener ‘Come Down’ is driving and hypnotic, oozing sexiness and a sense of freedom. Written as a soundtrack to liberating nights out with friends, ‘Come Down’ is a reminder that “you don’t have to be someone else to belong”.
Title track ‘How Love Bends’ is a synth-powered cinematic dreamscape, expertly led by Reb Fountain’s understatedly powerful vocals and storytelling. Floating harmonies and sweeping strings create a feeling of ascension as the track progresses and you are left feeling full and uplifted.
‘He Commands You To Jump Into The Sea’ delivers spoken word, reminiscent of the likes of Jack Kerouac. Compelling and thought-provoking lyrics thrive atop an infectious beat, as Reb invites “If anyone here is interested in loving themselves as much as they love god – follow me”. Lola Fountain-Best directs the recently released visual accompaniment that sees various characters acting on a call to follow, snaking through some of New Zealand’s iconic landscapes and artistic sculptures as they journey towards the sea.
One of my personal favourite tracks from this album, is the anthemic ‘Forever’. Fountain’s voice in the verses is commanding and purposeful, with a tranced, dreaminess for the chorus mantra ‘we do this forever’. Appropriately repeating, ‘Forever’ is a nod to the cyclical nature of the human condition. But rather than submitting to our inevitability, the song is a call to action to resist.
How Love Bends is captivating, mystical and, at times, other-worldly. With unapologetically raw storytelling, Reb Fountain takes us on a voyage of transformation as humans, as lovers and as individuals capable of forging our own paths. How Love Bends is out now via Fountain Records/Flying Nun.
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