Phases

Collections made up of B-sides and rarities—works that didn’t make the cut for one reason or another—can be risky. However, sometimes, like on this latest from Angel Olsen, the lack of extra polish works in favor of the music, keeping things simple, intimate. A lot of the tunes on Phases are loose and sparse, lilting by like passing clouds, pushed mostly by Olsen’s sultry voice. There are a few standouts, specifically the hypnotic seven-minute builder, “Special,” which rumor has it almost turned 2016’s My Woman into a double-LP. The song rides an endless wave with a simple and clear Velvet Underground-esque hook over whirling distortion, rising and falling with Olsen’s curious verses. Then there’s “California,” which taps into a Roy Orbison vocal warble and arching falsetto, and “May as Well,” which begins with a melody similar to Gershwin’s “Someone to Watch Over Me.” Olsen fans won’t be disappointed in the slightest.