PJ Harvey’s Voyager: 90s Punk Icon Goes to Space

PJ Harvey has had an eclectic career. Much like Bowie’s late career, Harvey has moved from punk rocker, to acoustic and now to epic experimental Hans Zimmer-esque sonic landscapes. Harvey’s last album I Inside the Old Year Dying was leaning into sparse experimental landscapes with a bit of a Kate Bush theatrical vocal. Let’s see where she goes next with her new single Voyager.

Musically, Voyager is the opposite end of the I Inside the Old Year Dying spectrum. 2001 style sci-fi synth is complimented by lush strings. You can feel the vastness of space, but it’s not cold. The strings give the track a warmth that is underlined by deep bass and textured synth as the track reaches an epic crescendo. This plays more like an epic Hans Zimmer score to some BBC space documentary than a single. That’s because it is. This is going to be a track to a new Brian Cox space documentary. The strings soar alongside ever growing syth….then the track suddenly ends. Like a comet. Harvey’s track soars and burns bright in the atmosphere until it vanishes. Voyager’s complex arrangement is a complete shift from Harvey’s stripped back stance on her previous record. I adore the epic scope of this track and how it captures both the vastness and wonder of space.

Vocally, Harvey is up to the epic task of living up to the arrangement. As you would expect, her vocal is powerful and soars above the musicality. Unlike her 90s punk raw animalistic vocals in the iconic album To Bring you my Love, her vocals on this single feel more refined…but not sterile. Her vocal still has that grounded genuine touch found in previous work. Sometimes a refined vocal feels like you are trapped in some bleach white studio, but with Harvey you feel transported. She sings about choosing life and choosing love as you look back on your life. You get the feeling that the epic scope of the track puts everything in perspective and boils life down to its essence…life…love…kindness…and care.

I love this track. Harvey shows the gift of a true artist, in that she is never content with standing still…she is always evolving…innovating. Like I said earlier in the review, this is a track she was asked to create for an upcoming Brian Cox space documentary. However, she did say that this is going to be part of a new album as well and I can’t wait to see what other surprises that has in store.

Listen to Voyager