Two recent tracks from The Broadest Blue enthrall with their poetic power and artful folk entrancement. The Brooklyn-based songwriting project of Kurt Juergens excels on “I Ate a Bouquet of Flowers” and “The Four Horsemen,” immersing with the former’s poetic flower symbolism and the latter’s apocalyptic Revelation inspirations.
“I Ate a Bouquet of Flowers” enamors in its gentle acoustic flutters and introspective, metaphoric lyrical prowess. “I ate a bouquet of flowers, the roots were the tenderest part,” Juergens’ elegantly melodic vocals outpour. The symbolism as flowers as an obstacle in one’s life is poetically stirring within, as is the wordless vocal beauty that takes hold into the final minute. A gentle bass throbbing and jazz-touched guitar progression surround the impactful vocal delivery; the overall aesthetic reminds stirringly of Leonard Cohen.
The more recent release, “The Four Horsemen” begins ominously with the sound of crackling thunder, though quickly soaring into a solemnly beautiful tranquility in the gospel-forward vocal harmonies. From there, the production consistently ventures from gorgeous intrigue to dark reckoning — an apt dynamic, considering its inspiration: the apocalyptic imagery of Revelation 6. The “rider, oh rider,” vocal chilliness meshes with the sound of horse hooves and creeping piano for a stirringly climactic appeal, especially as electric guitars and pit-pattering rhythms enter the fold.
Juergens elaborates more on “The Four Horsemen”:
“Originally I set out to write a song called “Behold, a Pale Horse,” partly a nod to the classic book by Bill Cooper. Then, as I dug into Scripture (Revelation chapter 6) for details, I briefly planned to cover all of the “seven seals” (the four horsemen are harkened by the opening of the first four seals out of the eventual seven). But as the interlude came to me, and the basic structure of the verses (though each verse tweaks the structure), it finally became clear to me what I was working on: The Four Horsemen. Each interlude and verse is in a key higher than the previous, so that the intensity of the piece is always rising (after the intro in E-flat major, the first interlude and verse are in D minor, and by the time we reach the outro, we’re in B-flat minor).”
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“The Four Horsemen” and other tracks featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Emerging Singles’ Spotify playlist.
