To many of them it must feel that they have lost a personal friend, such was the atmosphere of unforced intimacy that the music of Broadcast generated. Only hours before, word had surfaced that she was gravely ill, prompting worried ‘get well soon’ tweets and messages from the hidden army of Broadcast fans who haunted the internet. Trish Keenan, lead singer and primary creative force in the band Broadcast, had died from complications with pneumonia, contracted while on tour in Australia. The Valentines' dark side is especially prominent on the album, particularly on "Sueisfine," where the chorus slyly morphs from "Sue is fine" to "Suicide." Isn't Anything captures My Bloody Valentine's revolutionary style in its infancy and points the way to Loveless, but it's far more than just a dress rehearsal for the band's moment of greatness.Disbelief, shock and immense sadness greeted the news that broke last Friday morning, 14 January 2011.
On the wrenching "No More Sorry," she sings abstractly pained lyrics like "Your septic heart and deadly hand/Loved me black and blue," barely audible over a swarm of fragile yet menacing guitars, while on "Several Girls Galore" she's sexy, yet dazed and distant it sounds like she's whispering in your ear outside of a blaring nightclub. Indeed, many of Isn't Anything's disturbingly beautiful highlights come from Bilinda Butcher. Shields' unique tunings, tremolo, and miking techniques stand out on "You Never Should" and "Nothing Much to Lose," but Deb Googe's surprisingly funky bassline on "Soft as Snow (But Warm Inside)" reaffirms that all of the Valentines contributed to their innovative sound. "Feed Me with Your Kiss"'s mix of bruising guitars, drums, and sensual boy-girl vocals define My Bloody Valentine's signature sound, while "All I Need"'s weightless guitars and vocal melodies melt into a heady haze. The album's tightly structured songs still bore traces of My Bloody Valentine's previous incarnation as jangly indie popsters, but Kevin Shields and company crafted wide-ranging experiments within those confines.
Not only was it the most lucid, expansive articulation yet of the group's sound, it virtually created the shoegazing scene and spawned legions of followers.
Though it's often seen as just a precursor to their magnum opus Loveless, in its own way My Bloody Valentine's Isn't Anything is nearly as groundbreaking as their 1991 masterpiece.
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