Bodies of Water
Ears Will Pop & Eyes Will Blink
2007 | Thousand Tongues
Bodies of Water produce a sound that, upon your first listen, you feel inexplicably good. Ears Will Pop & Eyes Will Blink is the first full-length album from this Los Angeles band, one which I
cannot stop listening to. The songs range from 60's Pop-folk numbers,
full on choral chanting, and even spaghetti western tinged songs akin
to Morricone ("Doves Circle the Sky"). Many feel like mini soundtracks
to movies where the underdog is winning the battle or scenes of all out
happy dancing in fields, somewhere along the lines of the Polyphonic
Spree, just less voices.
Once the entire ensemble of voices and
instruments kick up, there is a slightly Evangelical element about
them, reaching out and forcing you to join in the symphonic chaos. I
find myself wanting to jump out of my chair and wave my hands around,
head tilting back in an unknown musical frenzy. Which brings me to the
Christian influence over the lyrics on the album; namely, they are
there. However, from an agnostic point of view they are not blatantly
in your face, yet rather complementing the harmonies of the songs like
in "We Coughed Up Honey" and "I Turned My Face" where you could always
put your own interpretive spin on them. You have to strain sometimes to
hear the lyrics because they mesh so well with the instruments, in
fact, they almost feel like instruments at times. Songs such as "These
Are the Eyes", "I Guess I'll Forget the Sound, I Guess, I Guess", and
"Doves Circle the Sky" all showcase the band's ability to create whole
stories of sound, adding and subtracting musical elements that
continually build upon themselves until the final apex of the song,
usually ending in their four part roars and pounding of instruments.
It's
funny to think that regardless of how energetic these songs are, Bodies
of Water is a band that must be experienced live as well. Though, "Eyes
Will Pop..." does do the band justice with their sometimes off-key
vocals and wild, lively playing. I usually try to recommend songs to
listen to off an album, but really, from start to finish this is good
listen, although it was extra nice to hear "Here Comes My Hand" again.
-Elana Rintala
Bishop Allen
The Broken String
2007 | Dead Oceans
There
are lots of reasons I like Bishop Allen, including mainly their
persistence in recording. Taking on the huge feat of release an EP per
month last year is pretty amazing, especially when their consistency is
set high above the bar. Oh, and they released them all for only $5
each. With all the chaos and lacking of inspiration that they had after
producing their follow up to 2003's Charm School, Bishop Allen came out
of the fog strong with The Broken String.
Stripped of any
pretentiousness, the band delivers enthusiastic songs that balance
harmony, dreamy pop and soft folky tunes. The re-workings of the older
songs polish them off to more clearly defined tracks. "The Chinatown
Bus" and "The News from Your Bed" both acquire this more developed
sound with vocal and instrument additions. The only track that I prefer
untouched was "Corazon". The original I feel had a bit more energy,
however the new track on its own still stands up- only in a more
over-the-top way.
The light-hearted sensibility on here is
actually what holds the songs together, molding each one into something
different but echoing the sentimentalities of the whole. I would argue
against some opinions that the songwriting here is sometimes too
flippant; it fits the music. People do not have to take themselves
seriously all the time. I'd recommend "Like Castanets," "Butterfly
Nets" and "The News from Your Bed."
-Elana Rintala
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