Victoire

Cathedral City (New Amsterdam)

By Erin Lyndal Martin
Published: October 3rd, 2010 | 1:00pm

Cathedral City is the shimmering debut LP from Victoire, the pet project of Brooklyn composer Missy Mazzoli that crossbreeds lo-fi electronica with dulcet classical music. While creating a new flavor of chamber rock, the group preserves the integrity of all genres they combine, much like contemporary composers Ólafur Arnalds and Nico Muhly.

Though a similar formula is employed to create each song on Cathedral City, this all-female quintet has other tricks up their ethereal sleeves. Shuffling sounds and distant vocals decorate the title track, while "Like a Miracle" unfortunately grows monotonous quickly with its postminimalist piano riff repeated over electronic hums with the occasional intervention of strings. Similarly, "A Song for Mick Kelly" sounds quite one-note until the sudden blitzkrieg of post-rock that gloriously finishes the song.

The album gets slightly darker as it progresses, too. "The Diver" indeed goes to the depths of Victoire's repertoire to bring sonic pearls to the surface, and the vibrato and background “ah”‘s in "A Song for Arthur Russell"—combined with faster-paced electronics—add exigency to the record in its penultimate track. On closer "India Whiskey," distorted violins and a vocal countdown begin the track in a very appropriate discomfort. This sound carries through most of the song, though orchestral swells occasionally appear like waves at high tide. Perhaps the ocean is the most apropos metaphor for Cathedral City, as each song is rich with depth and mystery, and there’s just enough chaos to keep a fine storm brewing.

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