Feeling something like an arrival, a train pulling up to the station after a long blur of landscape, Lasted is another welcome album from Benoit Pioulard. Similar enough to his previous albums on Kranky (Temper and Precis) to please fans who've been following along, Lasted's main difference is subtle: the crunch of leaf-mold under your feet is still present and eloquent, but you are nearing the edge of the woods; the trees are thinning out and a sky drenched in sunrise is piercing through the silhouetted branches. Like past works, the songs are interspersed among staticky found-sound landscapes, enigmatic and evocative.
Lasted's songs seem somehow more immediate -- maybe a little less buried in blur? Maybe the songs are a little fuller in arrangement? Is his singing a little further forward? More confident? Yes to all of the above. And these gentle tweaks and improvements have been made without compromising the apparent fragility of Pioulard's organic sound. It's a sound that, despite its gossamer properties, proves its resilience with a new batch of songs that are every bit as enveloping and transportive as the best moments of his previous recordings. Lasted is a well-executed album, one that feels effortless despite its obvious craftsmanship, musically akin to the golden rays of an autumn morning.
Lasted is a rewarding album from an understated talent; a difficult to pigeonhole amalgam of intricately-picked indie/folk guitar, soft white noises, field recordings, and increasingly skillful melodic sensibilities. The only drawback I can see is that, like all Benoit Pioulard albums, it leaves you wanting more.