Mistle Thrush

Agus Amarach (Bedazzled)
by Angela Dauthi

No matter how much Mistle Thrush wants to sound mysterious, I only feel a warm, happy flow from them. I’ve been informed (by someone who wouldn’t know a lycanthrope even if one ripped his throat out) that this “new Goth” scene is for “sickly suburban girls who call themselves Natasha.” That pissed me off. Goth has always had a dark, sinister, violent sensuality that was made all the more ominous by using sounds that could be considered pretty. But if Mistle Thrush is any indication, he could be right (the little fuck). From someone who takes Joy Division’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart” as optimistic, and Alien Sex Fiend’s “I Walked The Line” as an affirmation, there’s no way Agus Amàrach could be spooky or dark. Their songs remind me of zephyrs and cool chablis, and no amount of reverb or synth strings can change that. Valerie Forgione has a sweet voice, like Natalie Merchant wrapped in a diaphanous gown, and you can almost see her standing on some protrusion of land with the wind lifting her hair and clothing while the gentle music swells in the background. An extremely nice album, but someone in the band should get hooked on smack.