★★★½
Thao and The Get Down Stay Down’sA Man Aliveis all bone and wire; an intricate web of fragile emotions and prickly guitar solos.
But though it might look brittle and passive from the outside, this is a record that manages to transform hurt into heroism, and cowardice into courage.
The album was inspired in part by lead singer Thao Nguyen’s troubled relationship with her father. No need to consult the liner notes to discover that shred of personal history; hurt emanates from the piece like a wave of heat coming off a sick animal. “We are not born for departure, but we do learn to take it,” Nguyen sings on ‘Departure’, her pained voice curled up in the centre of the barbed wire nest she has chosen for a chorus.
Yet despite the undercurrent of tragedy, this is an album that demands movement. ‘Nobody Dies’ is a deranged rejection of reality, a cathartic wash of punky riffs and pogoing choruses, while album opener ‘Astonished Man’ works itself up to a stunning conclusion, gathering steam and energy until it boils over into utter insanity.
A Man Alive might be born of hurt, but it’s one hell of a ride: a spurned bride hitching up her wedding dress in order to deliver a kick aimed squarely below the belt.
