JAMES BLAKE: ASSUME FORM. PITCHFORK IS PROFOUNDLY CONFUSED
Review of Pitchfork’s review: ASSUME FORM
In May 2018, James Blake released Don’t Miss it, a single that was met with praise and criticism. Similar to a dog wanting to piss on a fire hydrant, Pitchfork has put forth yet another opinionated/unsubstantial review. Lozano noted that there seems to be “two James Blake at play: The one who loves to party and the one who likes nothing better than getting under the covers of his weighted blanket.”He then later states that Don’t Miss it is another “beautifully brutal song to add to Blake’s catalog of sumptuous sad boy music.”
After this review came out, Blake tweeted this big thing where he basically says: (1) he could not help but notice that “sad-boy” is used whenever he discusses his feelings in a song. (2) states that this characterization is unhealthy and problematic when used to shame men whom are expressing their feelings, which contributes to the “historical stigmatization of men expressing themselves emotionally” (3) Blake states we are in a epidemic of male depression and suicide.
So let’s unpack this: what did Lozano get right? Or what did Lozano get really right? This line sums up Blake’s true talent and shows Lozano is not completely out of touch: “The song’s complexity, for better or worse, comes from how Blake plays with his voice.” Why is this review important, and why is James Blake’s response important and or relevant to Assume Form?
This review of Don’t Miss it, which is a track on Assume Form in a sense foreshadows what review was to come. However, one would think that this album would land differently after Blake’s vehement response to the review of the single Don’t Miss it, but once again Pitchfork apparently did not get the memo, and continued to put him in the SAD-BOY category.
You really begin to get the sense that Sherburne is profoundly out of touch when he states that the line “I will be touchable/I will be reachable,”sounds“clinical,” which leads one to ask the glaringly obvious question: did this guy even listen to this album or did he just look up the lyrics? Has this guy even listened to a James Blake song?? Clinical? WHAT KIND OF THERAPIST OR PHYSICIAN ARE YOU SEEING PHIL? (Phil, feel free to reach out and send over a contact if possible.) If a person were to read the line out loud in a monotone voice, was wearing a lab coat, held up a chart maybe?? Sure, I can see how he arrived at this conclusion, but what separates James Blake from other artists is his ability to infuse an ordinary line or phrase with a feeling/mood with his unique vocals, so no Phil this is not quite “clinical.” As your counterpart, Mr. Lozano had said: “The song’s complexity, for better or for worse comes from how Blake plays with his voice.”
Unlike, previous albums all centering around feelings of loneliness or alienation, Assume Form focuses in on intimacy and sacrificing one’s tendency to look inward for the sake of another person.
Let’s rewind to 2016 when The Colour in Anything came out, which Pitchfork rated an 8.2, in part, because we feel Blake is maturing when we look back at his older albums like “Overgrown.” We begin to see a new side of James Blake, a side of vulnerability. Even though, Blake showcases a more tender side in his music you still get that the overarching theme here, is isolation, while at the same time you can sense that Blake is more comfortable in that isolation, indicating Blake is more introspective. It feels like Blake has matured in more ways than one The Colour in Anything when considering his previous albums.
Assume Form comes out and it takes a whole different approach. Certainly, James Blake did not throw us a major curveball, but this is different than any other album he has come out with because he is in a relationship, and it is going fairly well. And for that, I would like to personally say: congrats James!!!!!! James Blake is no longer the guy who can’t believe his siblings aren’t speaking to him. He is blossoming into a developed human being right before our eyes.
As it has been noted in other reviews of previous albums, James Blake is no “lyrical genius,” this is known, put to bed, and dealt with, so please Phil, spare us on this one. Sherburn notes that “there is the skeleton of a different, more interesting album lurking beneath the surface.”
And sure Phil, ok Blake is a creative artist who has been experimental in his music and albums, so without a doubt this is not the last time we hear from “sad-boy” Blake, but he took a different angle, because he is in a different stage of his life. Please refer to the James Blake tweet about the “sad-boy” box.
Although, it has been stated on multiple occasions that Blake is no “lyrical genius,” it is important to note that Blake meticulously captures moments, feelings, moods, and experiences in Assume Form.
For example, throughout the album Blake highlights on a tension or a tug of war between Blake’s need for solitude and wanting to be in a relationship with this person. In Power On, he thinks he would be better off without this person and admits “I was wrong.” Letting go of one’s ego is a central theme in this album.
In “Are you in love,” is Blake asking “we good?” or “are we on the same page here??” It’s like going on a fourth date and everything going really well and you really like this person, but you make a joke self deprecating joke that doesn’t quite land with them, and is just kind of sad, because they were supposed to laugh and they didn’t and you are not going to laugh, so it is just silent for about twenty seconds too long and conversation then picks up and things go well. Obviously, you regret it, but since everything else went so well you think “OK things are good.” But even then, you are second guessing yourself and feeling like sending a text saying something like “yo, we good??????” or like “heyyyyyyy, lol was just joking earlier haha! Did not mean to get so dark whoooooops. Had fun let's do it again” But you decide not to because it is kind of weird and you should just shrug it off or play it cool, and maybe they will forget about it completely if you do not bring it up EVER. I can’t be the only one who as ever felt this way.
Moving forward, this is a vulnerable side of Blake. He capitalizes on the universal feeling of insecurity and the subsequent need for validation, especially in this time and age, where it is more common to feel inadequate and insecure than it is to feel in tune with another person.
“Don’t miss” it is a piece that underscores what you miss when you look inward.
”The world has shut me out/ If I give everything I'll lose everything/ Everything is about me/ I am the most important thing/ And you really haven't thought all those cyclical thoughts for a while?”
He continues to discuss the implications of looking inward:” And as it keeps going/ I could never be involved/ I could never really see in real time/ I could never be involved/ And as it keeps on going/ I could avoid real time/ I could ignore my busy mind/ I could avoid contact with eyes/ I could avoid going outside/ I could avoid wasting my life/ I could avoid/ I could avoid 20/20 sight”
Blake comes to the conclusion: “And as it keeps on going/ You forget whether it was the beginning or end/ When you can't believe your luck/ (When you can't believe your luck)/ You're with your friend/ When you get to hang out with your favourite person every day/ When the dull pain goes away/ Don't miss it (Don't miss it)/ When you stop being a ghost in a shell/ And everybody keeps saying you look well/ Don't miss it/ Like I did/ Don't miss it/ Don't miss it like I did/ Like I did”
Sherburn claims Andre3000’s verse in What’s the Catch “ humorous self awareness” is what the album lacks most of all. Yes Phil. Ok, I can agree that the album lacks humor, but the album certainly does not lack self awareness, and if “Don’t miss it” is not self-aware enough for you, I have one question for you. Would you like James Blake to physically remove his heart, and send it in a box to Pitchfork HQs?!?!? Blake is not blithefully in love, but rather, is grappling with himself and his ego, which is evidently his biggest obstacle in his relationship.
Sherburn is right in the sense that Assume Form is heavy, but what he gets wrong is that Blake’s album is not “stagnant,” but rather, quite the opposite. Assume Form reinforces the fact that Blake is evolving as not only an artist, but also as a human being.