Benjamin Clementine – At Least For Now
- Written by Rob Crozier
For a debut album from a 24-year-old man, it would be hard to generate more passion or intensity than Benjamin Clementine’s album At Least for Now.
The album opening track ‘Winston Churchill’s Boy’ opens with the lyrics “Never in the fields of human affection/Had so much been given for so few attention.” This powerful message attempts to illustrate the gulf Clementine experienced between himself and his family. It also illustrates his ability to combine poetry, spoken word and stunning vocals on a grand scale. A wonderful lyricist, he combines flowing poetic style with deep soul.
‘Then I Heard a Bachelor’s Cry’ displays his talents at their very best. Clementine offers up moody, enticing lyrics over a soft piano with a selection of soaring strings. The beauty of this album, and of his talents, is simply stunning. It is also the construction which keeps you listening, as you never quite know where the song is going to take you.
The structure of the whole album is a wonderful melee of styles and the standard verse-chorus structure is quickly abandoned. His style has already drawn comparisons with Leonard Cohen. At first this seems a heavy tag to hang around an artist who is just starting their musical career. However within tracks such as ‘The People and I’ and ‘Condolence’, which appear towards the end of the album, it’s easy to see why comparisons exist. It is the song structure and word play, along with the confidence in his ability that keep your ears transfixed for fascinating lyrics.
In ‘Nemesis’, which starts out as a standard love song regarding waiting for love to arrive, Clementine displays his lyrical wonderment by crooning:
“If I held my breath on you/I would have died a thousand times/And if chewing was to show how much I cared/I’d probably be wearing dentures by now”
We are not sure, but we are pretty certain that it’s the first time dentures have been attributed to waiting in vain for love to arrive.
‘Cornerstone’ is the best track of the whole album. It brings together all Clementine’s talents; these consist of complex lyrical word play without becoming self-indulgent, combined with beautiful soaring vocals which deliver a simple message in a truly unique style.
One of the final tracks ‘Quiver a Little’ combines haunting piano with off-beat spoken word, which he whispers and uses to draw in the ear. It sums up his approach to production and his approach to songwriting as a whole.
This album very quickly goes from something that grows on you to something that you want to hear again and again. It is simply a stunning debut album which breaks so many apparent rules. We are so glad Clementine achieved this, and hope he continues to push boundaries.