This album starts off with “Velvet 4 Sale”. It’s a smooth intro, and by 10 seconds in this is already easily some of Meghan's most straightforward music to date. There’s this very sleek, laid-back synth groove that I actually think is incredibly classy. It’s very glitzy and futuristic, but the pain and hurt behind Meghan’s music that’s been a factor for years are back in a big way. But this time it’s so much easier to comprehend. Her performance is just so gloomy here and bruised. But she does the absolute strangest thing with this track, and make an honest to God pop song out of it. I love the lazy horns floating through the background, making for a seriously bizarre clash of styles. But Meghan turns all of this into such a mesmerizing and chilling performance. Then we have “Rage of Plastics”, which continues with that very uneasy, haunting vibe that this album started with. It’s still a Pop tune at heart, but Meghan does bring in some very classy Rock N Roll vibes. Meghan’s performance is a strange one, filled with daring albums that have pushed all sorts of buttons and blended genres. But the material here may be her most daring yet, even if it’s much easier to comprehend. “Rage of Plastics” has this fantastic bluesy vibe, as this one brings back the sort of “Highway Rock” that Meghan has worked with in the past. But this is certainly still freakish from the twisted saxophone playing to the masterful pacing. On the other hand, “M.A.H.” goes for something I really didn’t expect to hear, and that’s an all-out Post-Disco tune. The fact that this is the same girl that was making chilling sound collage’s like 3 years ago is completely bizarre. The groove’s here is infectious, and the continued lingering horns just out of reach really make this one memorable. “M.A.H.” ends up coming off incredibly true to its Disco roots, to the point where it occasionally does sound like a cover. But that’s not enough to bring this one down. It’s glitzy, catchy, but still incredibly chilling. Then we have the “Why Do I Lose My Voice When I Have Something To Say” interlude, which I certainly get why it’s included. It does get into a lot of the same topics this album deals with, and it is haunting in its own way. But I do sort of wish Meghan just tied this on to the end of a track.
Then we have “Rosebud”, which isn’t disco, it’s not experimental, it’s the closest thing to a straight-up dance tune we’ve gotten here yet. Meghan’s very ethereal performance here is so chilling, as she’s constantly seemingly floating out of reach. But the low-key synth groove and the very classy strings make this a much easier track to swallow. There’s still a very strange, timeless feel to “Rosebud” that I can’t shake. This is still such an incredibly buried album that’s just so haunted by pain and suffering, and that’s what really makes it stick with you. It brings in just enough chilling realism into this very otherworldly Pop, and it’s awesome. Then we have “Incidental Boogie”, which sounds like some Pop tune from another dimension. It's noisy, and it’s got one of the best grooves on this entire album. Interestingly though, I feel like Meghan almost sounds more comfortable in this very intense atmosphere. Once again though, it’s the incredibly real world that these lyrics come from that bring this back down a few pegs. Lyrically, “Incidental Boogie: tackles abuse in relationships, a common theme for this album. And while this one is funky and exciting at times, lyrically it does get knocked down a few pegs. Then we have “L-Over”, and remember earlier when I said that Meghan was bringing in some classic Rock N Roll vibes? Well, they’re back, and with more vintage Pop appeal than ever. I love the way this one creeps along, and Meghan’s very innocent performance is so chilling. It’s moments like this that really do stand out the most here when Meghan takes all of these usual elements Pop and turns them on their head. Once again, “L-Over” is chilling, which obviously has been a part of Meghan’s music for seemingly forever. But this may be her most haunting work yet overall. And the fact that she’s been able to hold on to that while making her most Pop album yet is truly special. Then we have “Pearly Gates” which is the furthest thing from vintage. There’s almost a sort of Hip-Hop groove to this one that I’m actually seriously down with. Meghan’s performance is soulful, but also incredibly bruised and beaten down. It’s got some serious grooves to it, but once again when you grab a look at some of these lyrics you’re brought right back down to earth. The truly haunting element of this album is abuse, something that’s been put into seemingly countless album’s recently. But Meghan continues to turn these horrible occurrences and twisting them into deformed Pop tunes.
“Poem” on the other hand, goes for a more traditional Synth Pop sound, an element I’m surprised we didn’t hear more of here. But, it’s certainly one of the most human and truly easy to swallow tunes here. Not to mention, Meghan doesn’t sound nearly as freakish as she often does. But it’s a lot of those reasons that I’m not as into this one. I think the groove is just as intense, and some of the more heavily drenched vocals in the later moments are seriously cool. But outside of that, this one is just not nearly as much of a punch in the gut. I do still like a lot of elements, and the strangely hopeful vibe to this one is refreshing as well. And I’m really not nearly as into the “Traviata’ interlude either, at least the other interlude sort of went with the themes here. Meghan finishes this album off with “Time”, and as a finale, this is strangely bouncy in parts. Which is actually really weird to hear after just how serious this album has been. But the breezy grooves and Meghan’s vocals are just so interesting. I love some of the bongo drums that come off so intensely, as a matter of fact, most of this track comes off surprisingly urgent. While a lot of the rest of this album has had a very sleek finish to it, “Time” comes off chaotic and unhinged. It ends up being one of the album’s more interesting tunes, and Meghan does such a good job of stringing this one out to a much longer time frame. It’s almost 8 minutes long, but it really doesn’t feel like it. “Time” is totally wild and colorful, and absolutely worth it.
Rating: 8.4/10
Give A Listen To: “Velvet For Sale”, “Rage Of Plastics”, “Incidental Boogie”, “L-Over”
Genre: Art Pop / Experimental Pop / Electronic
Overall Thoughts: Since the inception of the U.S. Girls moniker, Meghan Remy has increasingly drifted away from her more Experimental, Sound Collage days, and drifted towards a more accessible sound. "In A Poem Unlimited" is Meghan embracing Pop by any means necessary, even if it destroys her. On it's surface, this is colorful, ghoulish pop album filled with hypnotic rhythms and other-worldly hooks. But Meghan's performances slowly reveal that the evil of this album is very real. Meghan has taken her new, more Pop direction to spin tales of abuse and abandoment, making for some of the more depressing Pop tunes you're going to hear this year. Outside of that though, I feel like Meghan has truly become the left-field Pop Star that I always wanted to hear her become.
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