Album review: Young Dreams - Between Places

As a term of musical reference, symphonic pop feels faintly oxymoronic. Pop in its most instinctive form is not meant for grand statements; it's short, stabbing, and to the point. Overblown orchestration shouldn't really come into it.

Yet a closer inspection of the last 50 years shows the collision of symphony and pop works. The Beach Boys were, of course, kings of the craft. In the last decade, Panda Bear, Arcade Fire, and Grizzly Bear have all, to some extent, taken up the mantle, producing huge, ear-filling arrangements imbued with a distinctly poppy edge.

It's remarkably easy, then, to imagine Young Dreams mingling freely amidst this roll call of acts. The Norwegian collective's debut long player, Between Places, is possibly more symphonic than it is pop. Each track is ambitious and meticulously honed, gravitating around woozy melodies that lilt like palm trees in a West Coast breeze.

On a surface level, it's an incredibly easy and rewarding listen. "First Days of Something" is a doe-eyed,Graceland-infected earworm that swells into a summer-pop cacophony. Album closer "Young Dreams" touches on dreamy acoustics before revealing its harmonious swoon, peaking on hope-filled declarations of "We'll live forever."

Such simplicity, however, disguises the architectural craft behind this record. "Footprints," the buoyant album opener, is an entanglement of thumping percussion and seismic brass parps. "Fog of War" is just as beguiling, drifting in with Matias Tellez's drum-backed a cappella before its combination of keys and violins creates a dazzling, cloud-floating daze.

While Animal Collective comparisons will probably never be too far away, Young Dreams tend to stick to more accessible textures-even during 11-minute beach-combing opus "The Girl That Taught Me to Drink and Fight." Oxymoronic it may be, but symphonic pop doesn't come much more natural or sweeping than this. 

First published here for Under the Radar

Album review: Girls Names - The New Life

Clocking in at almost 50 minutes, The New Life is a long-form evolution for Girls Names. The band's 2011 debut Dead to Me was filled with staccato bursts of '80s indie pop clangs, thrashed out with the sort of breathless urgency that suggested the Belfast trio-since upgraded to a quartet-had its eyes on something much more substantial. Turns out it did: the follow-up.

In almost every way, The New Life fills out the adolescent bones of its predecessor. Traces of the wide-eyed Orange Juice-styled jangling still make a cameo in these 10 tracks, but this is a darker, more groove-orientated affair, led by insidious basslines that snake between the chasmal chimes of "A Second Skin" and "Hypnotic Regression."

Thematically, it's a record that revolves around solitude and this maudlin sense of confinement lurks in every nook: "Drawing Lines" is driven by a noose-tight guitar line that leads the charging melody; the up-tempo prang of "The Olympia" belies frontman Cathal Cully's spectral yearns; and the colossal title track is a seven-minute whirl of romantic melancholy bathed in chasmal reverb.

For anyone who's witnessed Girls Names live, none of this will surprise. The record's rhythmic nuance and towering structures represents a natural next step for a band that's worked hard to revise its sonic palette since its debut. It may lack the sun-drenched thrill of Dead to Me, but that was never the intention. The New Life is a fully-formed long player that yields rewards over time, not just 50 minutes.

First published here for Under the Radar

Album review: Ducktails - The Flower Lane

You could say Matthew Mondanile's idea of a "solo" project has become a little skewed. The Real Estate guitarist's fourth outing as Ducktails includes support from New Jersey outfit Big Troubles and contributions from Cults, Oneohtrix Point Never, and Outer Limitz (to name a few).But rather than dilute Mondanile's woozy psych-pop aesthetic, this congestion of ideas brings fresh focus to his lo-fi craft.

Notably, the shift from the bedroom-born acoustics of 2011's Arcade Dynamics to a studio environment has helped shape a richer, more voluptuous body of work. The surface-scratching lilts of old have been replaced by gorgeous multi-layered swells such as twinkling opener "Ivy Covered House" and the blissful undulation of "Sedan Magic." But The Flower Lane isn't about reinvention; Mondanile continues to produce sauntering laments that pour out like fresh orange juice on a warm summer's day.

This ethereal, if slightly languid, gaze is eagerly maintained by the Wild Nothing-like guitar chiming of "Under Cover" and the swirling, unbridled train ride of "International Date Line." Despite the familiar hallmarks, these 10 cuts are more dynamic than any of Mondanile's previous efforts.

In particular, "Planet Phrom"—a Peter Gutteridge cover—is the sort of feet-sweeping pop glide he's always threatened to unleash, while "Letter of Intent," a tussling duet between Future Shuttle's Jessa Farkas and Big Trouble's Ian Drennan, is a divine foray into synthesized dreamscapes.

 Sure, it's no masterpiece, but The Flower Lane represents Matthew Mondanile's most consistent record to date. It would appear flying solo is a lot easier when you've got friends. (www.ducktails.bandcamp.com)

First published here for Under the Radar

A nice end to 2012...

I've recently been approached to write for Under the Radar, an American music magazine billed as "the solution to music pollution". Slightly questionable straplines aside, I'm excited by the proposition as it's (1) my favourite Stateside music publication and (2) an opportunity to get back into print writing again.

It seems like an absolute age since I last wrote long-form print journalism. Being one of the last sect of journalism students to study the mechanics of pure print hackery, it's been a steady learning process for me getting fully versed in the art of digital writing. But, now I'm there, it will be interesting to see how I cope regressing back to print.

To be honest, I can't see it being too much of a problem. The multi-platform approaches that most magazines adopt today (ie what's in print also needs to go online) means there needs to be some sort of synergy in the style of writing. There's no use in writing something that only works in print when it's also needed for a digital audience. So a basis of short paragraphs, a strong lead and a rewarding pay off should work well for both mediums.

Given my UK location, I suspect one of the most challenging aspects will be writing for an American audience. Already I'm getting my 'Zs' mixed up with 'Ss" and I'm much more conscious when proofing  words like 'colour' and 'centre', but I'm sure a few will slip under the crack. I'm hoping Under the Radar has a strong subbing desk.

As ends to 2012 go, though, it's been nicely positive. Let's hope 2013 carries on in this fashion.