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1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 Not what you expect Oct 07, 2009
This is a fragile, delicate album, full of tender piano and brittle textures. Yes, Harvey's playing is rudimentary and her voice is less aggressive than usual, but that serves to make the songs personal and intimate. It's not an easy album to get into for those used to her usual sound, and probably difficult for first-timers too. I'd say it's more like a Lisa Germano album than a PJ Harvey one. Lisa Germano without cats.
Many reviewers compare this to her other albums, but I don't think that's fair. White chalk is a completely different beast. This may turn off most long-time fans, but if you give this album a chance you'll find that her just as exposed and vulnerable as on Rid Of Me without the brash aggression to compensate. She's not angry here, she's sad. These are the quiet moments of Stories From The Sea pulled out to half an hour. Much longer and it would be a chore.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
White Chalk Sep 25, 2009
White Chalk being the 8th studio album and her 2007 release is a very avant-garde album that is more towards the genre of experimental music then alternative rock. I like this with PJ Harvey. She never stands still in her creativity and this is no exception. She challenges both new and old fans with this album that is remarkably different from any of the other albums that I have listened to. The album is also quite short and this shows that an album does not have to be more then about 33 minutes to create great tracks. The booklet is very sparse and contains no lyrics but we get a list of whom plays what on the record. Allmusic, Slant Magazine, Rolling Stone and many other reviewers gave this record stellar reviews with high marks and I agree with them. This is a stupendous record. 5/5.
2 of 2 found the following review helpful:
PJ Harvey grace and power Aug 18, 2009
None of PJ albums is like the other. She always does a different thing but this desire of her is not " I will do the most challenging music on Earth", but a desire of "inner journey" to her soul and her creativity of story telling. Whatever she does, even she would sang a 30 second melody, she gives all of her emotion, charisma and power , which I thought what makes her different. She does not have any fear to use a few instruments cause she knows the number of instruments is not the case, the case is if the song is good and powerful. She does not have any fear going to even the darkest places and emotions. She can "really" face it and live it not just to do it only.
White Chalk is a dark, sad and honest beauty. She shows that she can go deeper and deeper. The album is short, powerful and full of grace.
I think she deserves the succes of being "free" in music, I mean "the real freedom". That's what a musician could do. Not only selling so much or being so popular but to create without any fear of loosing popularity and whatever. That's why I always see her as the hero of free musicians in alternative music world.
I feel so lucky and excited following her works and I will countinue to follow with pleasure..
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
White Chalk is PJ - All Grown Up Aug 09, 2009
I hated this the first time I heard it (actually the first year of trying to listen to it again and again). I just listened to it in line with all all of her other CD's, it's a very grown up PJ. I once described PJ to a friend as either depressed or really, really depressed. Her music generally sounds a certain way when she's really really depressed She's generally angry and wants to kill something or wants you to kill her (since you already have emotionallY), or perhaps she wants you to just kill yourself, or somehow the devil is involved, but always the great synchopated rhythms and base. When she's in a good mood, well something might also die, but she's more up beat about it, she wants to hang in a garden, or just watch you undress (hey I can get behind that), and there's always the great rhythms and base.
Well this is none of those things, it's ethereal, and as if she is looking inward to see, perhaps if she caused some of these problems herself. Well now I'd say that's a grown up approach. Don't expect to be uplifted, don't expect for it to be catchy. Don't even expect to exactly understand it, but in the context of listening to her other CDs, it is remarkably satisfying. It completes the thought, and so now we have a picture of why she's so angry sometimes, or why she's wearing the H311 out of that dress, why Stella Marie is her star, why she sees her beauty in your eyes in China Town, why the devil is driving her down, why she's going to withstand that Monsoon. It all makes sense. Maybe it's got it's Tori Amos moments, but I like her to too in small doses.
So I think I'm just a fangirl, but still compared to all of the other crap music, this is really very good, and says something a little different. Although there is no way I would just put this on thinking, I'm going to enjoy a little background music. This is modern Joni Mitchell.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
5 stars to increase the overall rating Jul 31, 2009
This album got 4 stars while Is This Desire? got 4 & a 1/2 stars. I think the ratings need to be reversed. In fact I think this deserves 4 & 1/2 stars & Is This Desire deserves only 3-4 stars, because it is nowhere near as good as this.
Without going into a review on the other album, I'll just say that this record is not as noisy or troublesome to listen to. The first track on the album (The Devil) was the first song I heard by PJ Harvey. I liked it because it sounded good enough to be on a commercial, yet strange enough to stay off of one. :D
Listening to this record & reading the reviews I am reminded of what happened to Adore by the smashing pumpkins. Billy Corgan tryed to take a more acoustic/electronic approach to the record & many fans were surprised & outraged at it. Many couldn't understand it & gave it poor reviews. Moving on to other bands that could satisfy their rock urges. Well this album is like that for PJ fans because it marks a departure from her past stuff. Rid of Me & Dry were more along the lines of "Punk" or Grunge. This is more on the lines of classical piano. I know that sounds terrible, but I dunno what else to call it. She gets ride of her guitar & replaces it with a keyboard. It's good though.
The second song on the album is Dear Darkness, and while it sounds good at first it gets boring & forgettable. The third song on the Album is Grow Grow & while I liked it enough to rate it 3 stars on itunes I later listened to it & rated it 4 stars because it sounded really good. Again it sounded familair (I don't know why) but different. It's a very beautiful song. I don't know how this album can get bad reviews, and I hate it when someone tries to say their a fan (I have all her albums blah blah blah) while not giving this record the time of day. Do you know those people? The kind that say their fans, but aren't really? To me a fan is someone who stands behind an artist while trying to understand & appreciate them. You don't have to like or agree with everything they do, just try & understand them. Anyway, I'll cut to the chase. If you listen to this record without any biases you'll most probably like it. Especially if you're a first time listener.
To sum up the record it's mostly her on piano. Don't look for any 90's alt rock here- look for that on Rid of Me. This album is mostly about her & her vocals. I would say that this album is her most emotionally creative, and it shows a growth in her career.
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