What Started my PJ Harvey Obsession
24 years ago today, PJ Harvey released one of my top three all time favorite albums. I listened to “Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea” for the first time on my first year of community college and I was struck with how much power PJ Harvey has vocally, sonically, but also emotionally. This album is full of instant classics that pull you into her magnetism, which works as a perfect introduction to who she is as an artist.
This album found me at a perfect time in my life where I was stuck in a music discovery slump. Artists stopped inspiring me and the only thing I would listen to was Paul Simon and Placebo. It all came to strike me back into reality with her collaboration with Thom Yorke in “This Mess We’re In.” I found it so special that it made me obsess with it, and then obsess with the album. “Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea” has become one of my comfort albums to play whenever I feel most like myself, and it makes me kneel to PJ Harvey’s music in every way.
Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea
My Top Three (extremely difficult):
This Mess We’re In will forever be one of my favorite songs as it never gets old. The way Thom Yorke and PJ Harvey converse and float together is simply stunning and striking. Even my mom likes this song and asks me to play it on the car all the time.
You Said Something is the song I play on loop constantly and easily one of my top three. With this song, sentimentality and nostalgia in the record really shine through, while PJ Harvey’s storytelling paints it so clearly.
One Line enters my top three for similar reasons to “You Said Something.” It is so emotionally raw, and the way it builds into the chorus makes it an experience to listen to. PJ Harvey also has one of my favorite voices, and the way it is so expressive in this song makes it perfect.
Honorable Mentions
Good Fortune is an absolute must listen and the song I come back the most since the energy is contagious and motivating.
A Place Called Home has the conversational aspect that I like from her collaboration with Yorke, while being fast-paced and energetic.
This is Love always makes me want to dance and more of the heavier sounds PJ Harvey gravitated to earlier in her career.
Big Exit is excellent for similar reasons to “This is Love” and the perfect opener
Kamikaze grew on me as I played this album on loop and it is a great showcase of PJ Harvey’s energy and vocals.
The Whores Hustle and The Hustlers Whore is another of the heavier songs in the album and absolutely amazing. So playful, adds so much depth, and the perfect balance of power and sentimentality that makes it fit perfectly in the album.
There are no skips in the album. We Float is beautiful and perfect in every way; Beautiful Feeling is a stunning collaboration and I love that PJ Harvey sings more in this one; Horses in my Dreams is the perfect change of pace for the album. These are just the slower songs that I gravitate towards in more specific moods.
PJ Harvey is the type of artist that is very well rounded musically, and every album feels purposeful and organic. She might forever inspire me and I have made it my goal to see her live as she continues touring and releasing music. Happy birthday to “Stories.”
Extra
I have the PJ Harvey 4- Track Demos on vinyl, which means I have “Hardly Wait” on vinyl.
