I Feel Cream by Peaches
Beggars, Xl Recordings

I Feel Cream came off as a wonderful surprise—while Peaches has not sacrificed her raunchy words or intent beats, the songs speak with a refined tone that has been missing from her previous releases. A beautiful melodic bouquet blossoms amidst the foundation she's laid in the past and her voice has gained or shows a more haunting and resonant quality through many of the tracks. There is a hint of sadness on these new tracks that is compelling and mysterious, that draws the listener in and makes them experience the music on a deeper level than before. Where previous tracks relied on shock and rawness, this one is able to put the weight so much more on the artist’s own talents without the façade of hyper-sexualization.

The normal hyper-sexualized lyrics do come forth in many songs, but even here it seems to have developed more wit in them than simply throwing out a few words to raise eyebrows. Of course some people are going to worry because of this that the edge is all spent, that she's aged past the fiery edge. That is a decision each listener is going to have to make—but even the most hooked on her clashing music will not be disappointed by a few of the more intense tracks. It’s a more complete experience though, showing another side to her work than we've seen in the past.

Is it an attempt at pop commercialism? That seems unlikely, given the weight of the rest of the disk would fetter even the ultra poppy 'Talk to Me' down into the same area she's always spent. It’s an adventure, it’s growth and change in a natural transformation as age, experience and life plays through an artist’s existence. This release offers a longer lifespan than others with a broader variety that hopefully will spark renewed debate.

REVIEWED BY RAIN PLETCHER 
[email: rain@groovemine.com]

'Talk to Me' from the album: