Beth Gibbons channeled her experiences of despair and traumatic events into her work, a process ultimately reflected in the creation of the decade-long work, “Lives Outgrown”. The album is an exploration of transformation, echoing the contemplative themes of Ovid’s poetry, which grapples with the raw, chaotic essence of human existence. More and more, the Portishead vocalist has come to perceive life more in terms of endings rather than beginnings, as she herself expressed, “some endings are tough to swallow”.
“Lives Outgrown” is an impactful album that strikes a balance between clarity and sentimentality. Included in its roster is the baroque track, “Tell Me Who You Are Today”, a song imbued with an undercurrent of poignant brilliance that sets the overall mood of the project. The mellifluous quality of “Floating on a Moment” steers listeners towards idyllic English countrysides, strikingly contrasted with the warmth akin to that of Sufjan Stevens. “Burden of Life” exhibits monumental emotions, with Gibbons’ tender yet forceful delivery blending deftly with exceptional percussion and string arrangements that harken back to Björk during her “Homogenic” years.
“Lost Changes” is a musical landscape of unrivalled grace paralleled with gentle guitar strumming. The song “Rewind” showcases pointed, potent guitar work combined with the hurried rhythm of “Reaching Out”, augmented by contributions of choral and brass, reminiscent of the legendary Johnny Harris. “Oceans” weaves a rich tapestry of guitars, enhancing Gibbons’s fatigued vocal narrative recounting female physicality.
“For Sale” embodies the density of its stormy subject matter through folk and eastern influences, its rhythm and tempo catapulting listeners back in time. The uneven piano notes of “Beyond the Sun” add mistiness to a detailed rendering of turmoil and destruction. This song strikes a balance between cheerfulness and melancholy, erupting into an instrumental tempest reminiscent of freeform jazz. “Whispering Love” serves as a softer echo of “Floating on a Moment” in terms of tone; it brings tranquility with flutes, birdcall-like notes, and soft skittering percussion. At its core, it reinforces the message of treasuring the “leaves on our tree of life where the summer sun unfailingly permeates through the trees of knowledge”.
“Lives Outgrown” effectively becomes that knowledge, incarnated as a deeply affectionate artistic expression.