Review Summary: How long can a smile endure before waning under the strain?
Seven Day Smile is a sobering, frank admission of the torment, Weaver has personally confronted. It is a heart-rending album, guided by beautiful, lucidly constructed melodies.
Despite addressing dispiriting themes, at no point does the album feel unbearably claustrophobic. This can be attributed to the steadying, therapeutic presence of leisurely struck guitar chords: a simple backdrop for Weaver’s bewitchingly, fatigued vocals.
The title of this album brilliantly conveys the depth of Weaver’s resilience. It leads to the ominous question, how long can a smile endure before waning under the strain?
Almost self-consciously, Weaver immediately establishes the tone, tempo, and purpose of her album in opener ‘Slow Song’. Weaver’s laconic style allows you to absorb the lyrics without tarnishing the music’s innate catharsis. This catharsis is channelled through the trance-like repetition of “Keep it clean” which discloses a desire to purge, and ultimately heal. ‘Slow Song’ is a warning to listeners - stay, or leave now.
It is a reflection of Weaver’s candid approach that the warning ensues with eponymous track ‘Seven Day Smile’. By plunging straight into the album’s source, Weaver demonstrates unflinching focus.
‘Seven Day Smile’ ambivalently exposes Weaver’s unperturbed/resigned outlook on life: “what’s the difference anyway?” Niftily, Weaver casts her issues aside “time to unwind it doesn’t matter anyway” a statement which parallels a suddenly glorious upturn in the song’s mood. Soulful piano sprightly bounces into the zenith; accompanied by rattles, swirling soprano synths, and the tap of a tambourine, fomenting an addictive urge to click your fingers. The distortion of her voice into a stammering at the end intensifies the strong dreamy quality. Folktronica ecstasy!
Whilst I believe it to be the album’s pinnacle track, there is no dramatic slump afterwards.
A supremely talented musician, Weaver knows how to concoct a lush, nocturnal atmosphere. This is best illustrated by ‘Starglow’. The plucking of deep cello strings is particularly stirring when accompanied by her celestially abstract voice.
Whilst ironically subdued ‘You’re A Riot’ is the most anthemic track. It begins with amplified light whirring synths which quickly, yet gently, fade into the background as mellow, yet hefty, guitar chords are struck. Sadly, this is the only occasion where overdrive is applied. The haunting, garbled drone evokes subtle deterioration: the type easily overlooked until it is irreversible.
To my surprise ¾ through the album, Weaver seemingly attains the happiness she deservedly craves in ‘Once You’d Given Me Up’. The self-titled chorus intertwines her voice with background vocals, to outstanding effect, with the “Up” dragged to a dizzying height – implying a huge sigh of relief – FREEEEEDOM!! With tension visibly reduced, it comes as an acerbic setback when a few tracks later, she plummets in ‘Gutter Girl’. This devastating trajectory is echoed by trickling synths: a precursor to brief, haunting silences.
Hailing from Manchester, Weaver emerged at the same time as The Doves, Elbow, and Cat Power. The latter’s influence is prominent in ‘Weathered’ – an acute metaphor about the gradual erosion of resolve. Weaver’s voice is perfectly calibrated to this trope. Languorous, yet flecked with grief it is one of a lengthy list of “reasons to be side-tracked”.
Key Tracks
'Starglow'
'You're a Riot'
'Gutter Girl'
