How To Dress Well - Love Remains

This debut LP, Love Remains, follows hot on the heels of a series of well-received EPs from How To Dress Well that have all been released in the last year. The recording project of Brooklyn’s Tom Krell (with contributions from Cologne-based enigma cokc dokc), How To Dress Well’s music is undoubtedly lo-fi and eerie in sound, while at the same time drawing influence from high-fidelity R&B and hip-hop; recent non-album track ‘Ecstasy With Jojo’ samples Michael Jackson, while Lil B has just used a sample of HTDW’s own ‘Ready For The World’ on an ace new track of his own, much to Krell’s delight. On Love Remains these influences combine with a shadowy early-hours vibe reminiscent of Grouper, while Krell’s Bon Iver-style falsetto alternately hovers between being upfront in the mix and fading into the background as just another texture.
 
While the likes of SALEM have recently been accused of using hip-hop signifiers in a somewhat patronising, clumsy manner, there’s no doubting Krell’s affection towards his source material. In an interview with Pitchfork earlier this year, he declared “I really love ‘90s R&B. It’s not a joke to me”, before going on to expand upon his aesthetic approach: “It’s a lot more about sound design than my personality…it’s more about delivering a feeling…The songs are organised like pop songs, but still disorganised and experimental enough that you can listen to them as a means of selfless possession.”
 
Quite a few of the tracks on Love Remains are reworked and retouched versions of tracks that first appeared on those aforementioned EPs from earlier in the year, and overall the record feels more like a compilation than a cohesive long-player, but this disjointed vibe suits the music well. ‘Ready For The World’ is arguably HTDW’s most acclaimed moment to date, sampling Ready For The World’s own ‘Love You Down’ and turning a slushy ballad into a ghostly lament in the process. ‘You Won’t Need Me Where I’m Going’ is another highlight, Krell’s expressive, sensual vocal overlaying a sparse, extremely lo-fi instrumental backdrop (fidelity purists, be warned: this LP may have you tearing your hair out!).
 
‘Decisions’, inspired by Turkish surrealist Yüksel Arslan, has a world music feel to it, with uplifting backing vocals and an arrangement that soars in the most understated of manners. ‘Endless Rain’ is the most fleshed-out, full-sounding track on the record, but it’s over almost as soon as it begins, emphasising the elusive nature of How To Dress Well’s music. By the time the soothing ambient strains of ‘Suicide Dream 1’ bring Love Remains to a close, Krell has conjured an enchanting atmosphere that’s by turns obscure and engaging, eerie and tuneful. Dive in.