Everywhere, an Empty Bliss
Ivan Seal, Pm, Why Bees Are Very Silent (2019), oil on canvas
Compilation album by
the Caretaker
Released26 February 2019 (2019-02-26)
Genre
Length49:32
Label
  • History Always Favours the Winners
  • FRAC Auverne
CompilerLeyland Kirby
The Caretaker chronology
Everywhere at the End of Time - Stage 5
(2018)		 Everywhere, an Empty Bliss
(2019)		 Everywhere at the End of Time - Stage 6
(2019)

Everywhere, an Empty Bliss (stylized as “Everywhere, an empty bliss”) is the twelfth and final release by the Caretaker, an alias of English musician Leyland Kirby. Released on February 26, 2019, the record is compiled from archived tracks that were meant to be used on the Caretaker's albums. Before finishing his album series Everywhere at the End of Time, Kirby released the album as "a surprise golden farewell". It is the first album under the Caretaker alias to feature easily audible lyrical content since 2003's We'll All Go Riding on a Rainbow.

Most similar to the compositions of Stage 3, the album was promoted by a French art exhibition. Following the album's release, Kirby performed in 2019 and 2020 for promotion. He claimed the record would be free to download until June 2019, but as of 2023, it was still available for free. Everywhere, an Empty Bliss met praise from music critics because of its content related to dementia.

Background

The Caretaker was an alias of English musician Leyland Kirby that manipulated big band songs.[1] Inspired by the film The Shining (1980),[2] the pseudonym's first releases were heavily influenced by the movie's haunted ballroom scene.[3] However, Kirby later moved on to explore memory loss through Theoretically Pure Anterograde Amnesia (2005).[4] Shifting record labels, Persistent Repetition of Phrases (2008) changed from V/Vm Test to History Always Favours the Winners.[5] The album featured a change in concept from previous records; rather than amnesia, it depicts Alzheimer's disease.[6] Along with the Caretaker's first releases, the album was mentioned by Fact as a "modern classic" of Kirby's music.[7] The Caretaker broke through the ambient scene with An Empty Bliss Beyond This World (2011).[8]

After five years without any releases, Kirby announced that he would be "giving the alias dementia" with an album series titled Everywhere at the End of Time (2016–2019).[9] The series explored the disorder and attempted to replicate it through six stages, with Stage 1 consisting of ballroom music loops and Stage 6 consisting of white noise.[10] It would later be misinterpreted by music publications,[11][12] draw comparisons to the Brexit process,[13] and inspire other musicians to create music influenced by experiences with patients.[14][15][16] Alongside the final album of the series, Everywhere, an Empty Bliss was released, according to Kirby, as "a surprise golden farewell".[17] He added that it is:

"one last chance to raise a charged glass for those we lost along the way, for all the works, for those ghosts from our past, for our uncertain future and for the Caretaker."

Composition

Mastered by musician Stephan Mathieu,[18] Everywhere, an Empty Bliss combines the titles of Everywhere at the End of Time and An Empty Bliss Beyond This World.[19] The record is compiled from tracks that were meant to be used on these albums.[17] It presents a movie-like texture with nostalgic sounds of vinyl crackle. Like on Everywhere at the End of Time, the music gets more distorted as the album progresses, also reflecting dementia.[20] However, this is done in miniature in contrast to the six-hour runtime of the album series.[19] Like the series, the album also features a range of emotions, from joyful to hauntological.[20]

The album is most similar to the compositions of Stage 3. On "Losing Battle of Loss", the melancholy settles in the album. This is contrasted by "All Eyes Bewildered", which features a music box song. "Losing Loss of Battle" repeats "Losing Battle of Loss", and by "Plaque Advanced Despair" the music struggles to have a coherent melody.[19]

The record presents lyrical content within some of its tracks. On "Glimpses of Life Denial", a woman recites a Santa Claus song to a group of kids. "Benjamin Beyond Bliss" features a sample of a song by piano duo Layton & Johnstone that is manipulated so that only small parts of the voice are recognizable.[17] It features garbled words, akin to a destroyed intercom.[19] By "Dusk Memory Fraction", a man singing in French can be heard.[19][17]

Artwork and release

The artwork was created by Kirby's long-time friend Ivan Seal.[21] The arts of Seal and the music of Kirby were included on a French exhibition that occurred in 2019, done by the arts company FRAC Auvergne. Named after Everywhere, an Empty Bliss, it presented Kirby's music and names for the paintings used as the album covers.[22][23][24] In the exhibition, a CD edition of Everywhere, an Empty Bliss and a booklet consisting of Seal's paintings were also present.[25] The company released a YouTube promotional video announcing that their exhibition would happen from 6 April to 6 June 2019.[26] Seal's art was also featured near one of Kirby's live performances in 2019, on an exhibition titled Cukuwruums. Searching for uncommon venues, a signature mark of the festival, the organizers found an abandoned apartment from 2014. Seal felt that "nothing should be cleared up—there would be no brushing up". First built as a part of the performance, the exhibition remained open later.[21] The title of its artwork, Pm, Why Bees Are Very Silent (2019), is an anagram of the album's name. The record's CD edition presents a different part of the painting used as the album cover on the digital edition.[17][27]

Kirby's last work as the Caretaker,[28] Everywhere, an Empty Bliss was released on 14 March 2019, alongside Stage 6 of the album series.[29] Kirby claimed the album would be available for free on his Bandcamp until 16 June of that year.[30][31] However, as of May 2021, the record is still available for free.[17] To promote the album and his album series, Kirby performed at two music festivals: the "Solidarity" show of the Unsound Festival in May 2019,[32][33] and the "[Re]setting" Rewire Festival in 2020,[34][35][36] which would occur in April at The Hague.[37][38]

Critical reception

Everywhere, an Empty Bliss received general praise from music critics for its dementia-related topics. Hayden Menzies, drummer of band Metz, wrote for Bandcamp Daily that the album "is kind of terrifying for a lot of people and understandably so". He added that the record is "worth a listen, but don't be prepared to come out feeling very good after". Richard Allen of website A Closer Listen felt that, along with the album series, the release "offers dignity to those suffering from the disease, as well as encouragement to caregivers". He called them "a definitive statement".[19] However, reviewing the album series for Spectrum Culture, Holly Hazelwood stated that it can "seem excessive to want to listen to another 40 minutes of [the] Caretaker's music" following "six-and-a-half hours within the sound of someone losing the fundamental building blocks of who they are".[3]

Along with Everywhere at the End of Time, Everywhere, an Empty Bliss ranked fourth on A Closer Listen's top releases of the 2010s listing.[39]

Track listing

Digital and French CD listings adapted from Bandcamp and Boomkat respectively.[17][25]

Digital version
No.TitleLength
1."Loss of Want Back There"5:20
2."I Might Be Vanishing"0:09
3."Empty Beyond Beyond Beyond"1:22
4."Losing Battle of Loss"2:40
5."Advanced Plaque Camaraderie"3:05
6."All Eyes Bewildered"3:24
7."Glimpses of Life Denial"2:36
8."Equinox Eyes Will Stop"2:59
9."Losing Loss of Battle"2:38
10."Plaque Advanced Despair"2:55
11."Benjamin Beyond Bliss"1:06
12."Drifting Sublime Hope"3:35
13."Minimal All You Are"3:38
14."Internal Unravel"3:38
15."Dusk Memory Fraction"3:00
16."Entanglement Synapse Ache"3:23
17."And Bliss Everywhere Bliss"3:57
Total length:49:32
French CD version
No.TitleLength
1."An Empty Everywhere"1:50
2."I Might Be Vanishing"0:10
3."My Heart Is True"3:26
4."Losing Battle of Loss"2:40
5."Advanced Plaque Camaraderie"3:06
6."All Eyes Bewildered"3:25
7."Glimpses of Life Denial"2:37
8."Lonely Way Ahead"2:59
9."Losing Loss of Battle"2:38
10."Plaque Advanced Despair"2:55
11."Benjamin Beyond Bliss"1:06
12."Drifting Sublime Hope"3:35
13."Hidden Minimal Sea"3:38
14."Internal Unravel"3:38
15."Dusk Memory Fraction"3:01
16."I Might Be Vanishing"0:10
17."Elusive Sunshine"3:07
Total length:44:01

Personnel

Adapted from YouTube.[18]

Release history

Release formats for Everywhere, an Empty Bliss
Region Release date Label Format Ref.
Worldwide 14 March 2019 History Always Favours the Winners Digital download [17]
4 April 2019 FRAC Auvergne CD [25]

References

  1. ↑ Seymour, Corey (14 December 2018). "The Caretaker's Musical Project Is One Part Psychological Experiment, One Part Auditory Revelation". Vogue. Archived from the original on 16 December 2018. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  2. ↑ O'Neal, Seal (31 October 2013). "A scene from The Shining inspired a haunting ode to dying memory". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on 3 November 2019. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  3. 1 2 Hazelwood, Holly (18 January 2021). "Rediscover: The Caretaker: Everywhere at the End of Time". Spectrum Culture. Archived from the original on 23 January 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
  4. ↑ McKeating, Scott (3 January 2006). "The Caretaker - Theoretically Pure Anterograde Amnesia - Review". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on 15 April 2021. Retrieved 19 February 2021.
  5. ↑ Davenport, Joe (28 June 2011). "James Kirby (The Caretaker) | Interview". Tiny Mix Tapes. Archived from the original on 30 June 2011. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
  6. ↑ "The Caretaker: Persistent Repetition of Phrases Review". Fact. 26 August 2009. Archived from the original on 15 April 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  7. ↑ "New album from The Caretaker". Fact. 2 September 2009. Archived from the original on 8 April 2010. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
  8. ↑ "An Empty Bliss Beyond This World by the Caretaker - Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. 21 June 2011. Archived from the original on 25 June 2015. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  9. ↑ Strauss, Matthew (22 September 2016). "James Leyland Kirby Gives 'The Caretaker' Alias Dementia, Releases First of Final 6 Albums". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 23 September 2016. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  10. ↑ Ezra, Marcus (23 October 2020). "Why Are TikTok Teens Listening to an Album About Dementia?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 23 October 2020. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
  11. ↑ Darville, Jordan (22 September 2016). "This Musician Is Recreating Dementia's Progression Over Three Years With Six Albums". The Fader. Archived from the original on 26 September 2016. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  12. ↑ P, Mr (22 September 2016). "The Caretaker to release a six-part series exploring dementia over the course of three years". Tiny Mix Tapes. Archived from the original on 26 September 2016. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  13. ↑ Clarke, Patrick (20 September 2018). "Phase Five Of The Caretaker's Everywhere At The End Of Time". The Quietus. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  14. ↑ Bowe, Miles (5 October 2017). "Artists pay tribute to The Caretaker on 100-track charity compilation Memories Overlooked". Fact. Archived from the original on 7 October 2017. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
  15. ↑ P, MR (5 October 2017). "Nmesh curates 100-track tribute compilation to The Caretaker, proceeds to benefit The Alzheimer's Association". Tiny Mix Tapes. Archived from the original on 5 October 2017. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  16. ↑ Bowe, Miles; Welsh, April Clare; Lobenfeld, Claire (6 December 2017). "The 20 best Bandcamp releases of 2017". Fact. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Caretaker, The (26 February 2019). "Everywhere, an empty bliss". Bandcamp. Archived from the original on 30 March 2019. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
    • "Glimpses of Life Denial":
      • "Santa Claus in Holland / Now children, listen to my tale / It's true"
    • "Benjamin Beyond Bliss":
      • "Oh my heck / Layton / Lo- Love of- / Come to the chord."
  18. 1 2 vvmtest (14 March 2019). "The Caretaker - Everywhere, an empty bliss (FULL ALBUM)". YouTube. Archived from the original on 15 March 2019. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  19. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Allen, Richard (3 June 2019). "Ivan Seal / The Caretaker ~ Everywhere at the end of time / everywhere, an empty bliss". A Closer Listen. Archived from the original on 30 September 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
  20. 1 2 Timony, Mariana (7 October 2020). "Hayden Menzies of METZ Picks His Bandcamp Favorites". Bandcamp Daily. Archived from the original on 26 October 2020. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
  21. 1 2 Battaglia, Andy (14 November 2019). "In Abandoned 14th-Century Building in Poland, a Painting Show Where the Art Aims to Disappear". ARTnews. Archived from the original on 27 September 2020. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
  22. ↑ "IVAN SEAL / THE CARETAKER - everywhere, an empty bliss (DOSSIER PÉDAGOGIQUE)" (PDF). FRAC Auvergne. Archived (PDF) from the original on 6 May 2020. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  23. ↑ "Ivan Seal / The Caretaker - everywhere, an empty bliss (DOSSIER DE PRESSE)" (PDF). FRAC Auvergne. Archived (PDF) from the original on 7 May 2020. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  24. ↑ "IVAN SEAL / THE CARETAKER – Everywhere, an empty bliss". Fonds Régional d'Art Contemporain Auvergne. 6 April 2019. Archived from the original on 1 May 2019. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
  25. 1 2 3 Caretaker, The; Seal, Ivan (4 April 2019). "Everywhere, An Empty Bliss". Boomkat. Archived from the original on 14 August 2020. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  26. ↑ fracauvergne (7 May 2019). "IVAN SEAL / THE CARETAKER - Everywhere, an empty bliss". YouTube. Archived from the original on 17 September 2020. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
  27. ↑ Caretaker, The. Everywhere, an Empty Bliss (booklet). FRAC Auvergne. p. 55.
  28. ↑ Bruce-Jones, Henry (14 March 2019). "The Caretaker bids farewell with Everywhere At The End Of Time: Stage 6". Fact. Archived from the original on 24 October 2020. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  29. ↑ Beane, Pat (15 March 2019). "Chocolate Grinder: The Caretaker - Everywhere, an empty bliss". Tiny Mix Tapes. Archived from the original on 24 July 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  30. ↑ Eede, Christian (14 March 2019). "The Caretaker Releases Project's Final Stage". The Quietus. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  31. ↑ "Final release for The Caretaker project after 20 years". The Wire. 19 March 2019. Archived from the original on 31 March 2019. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  32. ↑ Philip, Ray (29 May 2019). "Unsound announces first acts for 2019 edition". Resident Advisor. Archived from the original on 9 October 2019. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  33. ↑ Lee, Steph (2 July 2019). "Unsound reveals second wave of acts for 2019 festival". Resident Advisor. Archived from the original on 15 November 2019. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  34. ↑ Hawthorn, Carlos (26 November 2019). "Rewire Festival confirms first acts for tenth anniversary in 2020". Resident Advisor. Archived from the original on 6 January 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  35. ↑ Lee, Steph (22 January 2020). "Rewire 2020 reveals second wave of acts for tenth anniversary". Resident Advisor. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  36. ↑ Smart, Dan (27 November 2019). "Rewire festival announces its initial lineup for 2020, and FUCKING EVERYONE IS GOING TO BE THERE". Tiny Mix Tapes. Archived from the original on 4 December 2019. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  37. ↑ Eede, Christian (28 February 2020). "Rewire Finalises 2020 Line-Up". The Quietus. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  38. ↑ Eede, Christian (26 November 2019). "Rewire Confirms First Acts For 2020". The Quietus. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  39. ↑ Dietz, Jason (2 December 2019). "Best of 2019: Music Critic Top Ten Lists | A Closer Listen: 4. Everywhere at the end of time/everywhere, an empty bliss by The Caretaker". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 2 December 2019. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
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