Yeah, I could probably listen to Random Spirit Lover and The '59 Sound and Merriweather Post Pavilion for the rest of my life, but sometimes it's worth trying something new.
I'm breaking down my latest batch of album reviews--since I haven't talked about music yet in 2010--into two parts. First off, we get the stuff that hasn't officially been released yet, but has somehow made its way onto the Internet. Three albums fit this category, here they are:
Frog Eyes - Paul's Tomb: A Triumph
Release: April 26
The thing about Frog Eyes is this: for most people, good music doesn't startle. For most people, when listening to music, you want to be able to forget about it if something more interesting comes across your screen or into the room. If you're listening to any Frog Eyes, you can't do this--suddenly, Casey Mercer will start whooping "I KNOW WHAT SHE SAID AND THE WITCH HEARD WHAT SHE SAID TOO", and your attention will be back on the music.
In short, they are not an accessible band. They're not as out-there musically as you might think from what I've written this far, but they're not exactly normal either. Which is why Paul's Tomb is kind of neat. The crazy vocals are still there, but not quite as prominent, and the instrumentation has been given more prominence, leading to a sound that's less "insane singer with keyboards" and more "band with insane singer".
It's a little heavy on the indie rock epic side of things, three songs clock in at over seven minutes, and they all tend to drag a bit (unlike Mercer's Swan Lake collaborators, who seem able to pull the long songs off in their other projects). One plus is that the short-burst-of-noise songs are much less abundant than in the past--only one song under 2:10 on this album, while a previous offering, The Golden River, had four--these quickies are some of Mercer's best work, but they've been overused horrendously in the past.
I can't say much about specific tracks because, well, it all sounds somewhat the same to me. It's Casey Mercer whooping (not my word, but easily the best descriptor of his vocal stylings) over crashing keyboards and drums and sometimes guitars. The lyrics are usually unintelligible--not in a bad way, but in a way that makes it difficult to remember any song a few hours later.
The inclusion of "Lear, In The Park", an instrumental track, works, mainly because of the hauntingly familiar riff.
Overall, a good album. Noticeably less crazy than the early stuff, but the trade-off is that it's more accessible.
The New Pornographers - Together
Release: May 4
Finally! The band that got me out of purely classic rock and into more modern music have released their follow-up to 2007's Challengers, an album which got poor reviews only because it was being compared to the rest of the NP's discography.
Together is a clear effort to appease those who felt Challengers was a castrated version of a New Pornographers album, shorn of any power pop sensibilities. At last, every song says, this is the energetic band you remember, despite occasional callbacks to the last album such as "Up In The Dark".
To some extent, it works. Only two tracks in, "Crash Years" provides the first absolutely-amazing hook on par with anything from Twin Cinema (and it's whistled, which I believe is a first for the group). "Your Hands (Together)" is up there with the band's other beloved anthemic songs. I loved the Dan Bejar tracks, "Silver Jenny Dollar" in particular, right away, but he's generally my favourite part of any NPs album on first listen.
But overall, something still seems amiss. The harmonies are as strong as ever, the vocals are distinct and spectacular, the instruments are heavier and far more energetic than on Challengers, instrumentation is being given more attention than ever...but something's still not quite right. I can't point to any specific examples of this, but the lyrics feel a little more reflective than they were in the band's best years. The words still make as little real sense as they did when I called attention to that last year, but somehow they seem less involved, more observational than active and participatory.
(Reading that paragraph again, could I be any more of an annoying elitist snob?)
"Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk" is a real gem, and a song I could see getting actual radio airplay, something that has generally eluded the New Pornographers through their history. "Valkyrie In The Roller Disco" is a neat track to highlight the back half of the album, and something a bit different from anything this band has ever done before (well, they've done ballads, but...). "Daughter of Sorrow" is another catchy tune, and sounds much more like a Newman composition even though I assume it's a Bejar song, as he's on lead vocals.
It's been said that there's one track on a previous album that gives you an idea of the direction for the new one--for example, "Streets of Fire" off Twin Cinema was the precursor to Challengers--and if that's the case, "Mutiny, I Promise You" is perhaps the best indicator of what to expect from Together.
The Gaslight Anthem - American Slang
Release: June 15
This one leaked early.
It's a bit of a cop-out here, because pretty much everybody is banking on this being Gaslight's breakthrough album that turns them into legitimate mainstream rock stars. This album should accomplish that.
The '59 Sound was awesome, but it only achieved limited success because it sounded more like what you'd hear on a classic rock radio station than on a newer-skewing format. American Slang retains the distinct vocals and guitars that Gaslight have become known for, but eschews the older influences in favour of a more upbeat album that sounds much more palatable to today's audiences.
The catchy hooks are still around, starting with "Stay Lucky" and going right through the album. It's also nice to see some oft-repeated phrases like "the cool" sticking around.
One opinion on the album I've seen is "oh, they became Kings of Leon"--which isn't really that far from the truth. Gaslight has gone from their Springsteen-esque retro anthems to songs you could easily see filling a stadium.
"Bring It On" could easily be a hit, with "Old Haunts" as a followup, while "Orphans" is a nice callback to the band's past sound.
To me, this seems like the album that will finally catch on with the mainstream and turn The Gaslight Anthem into bona fide superstars. Right now, it's my least favourite of their three albums, but like the others, I imagine it'll grow on me over time.
At the moment, though, I'm disappointed. It's a generic rock album, a bit better than average, but it doesn't have the unique amazingness that I found in The '59 Sound and even Sink or Swim to an extent. If this is what they've been building to, I'm not sure I like the new direction.
--Ryan
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