it’s never been like that (phoenix)
I LOVE this album. Few bands play guitar with a more perfect crackle and pop. There’s a brightness to them I just love.
“Napoleon Says”- addictive sear of the guitar. “Consolation Prizes”- pure shimmering pop. Total classic. I listen to this song when I’m waking up and I always feel like I’m in the opening credits of an indie movie. Also the lyrics are strikingly relevant to my life. Even when it gets too sugary after a few listens, this has become one of the key songs in my life.
“Long Distance Call”- Awesome. The song that I got the record for, that hot flat drumming, the urgent tangle of guitar and bass, the cascade yelp of the chorus. This is a great track.
In the middle of the album the songs take on a coolness, a leisutely groove, a brisk autumn drive.
“Lost and Found”- I love everything that happens with the guitars, the beautiful glow as they dance down the stairs, and the heavier dramatic swing in the chorus gets me too.
This album is in the category of, multiple stars, and even the forgettables are listenable (though they may try my patience just a little- this group has a habit of too-long instrumentals.)
And then, man, the closers. “Sometimes in the Fall”- (I love the drive, love the call of the vocals, the bright slide of the guitar. Classic. And “Second to None”- on an album repeatedly defined by brilliant, shiny, striking guitar work, this might be the best of all. The guitars take dramatic stands across the whole song, especially in the chorus- a breakthrough of narrative. There’s a huge story, a huge promise, entirely in the strike of a riff. And the puppy-dog yelp of the vocals, of course, another Phoenix trademark.
Great pop, driven by some of my favorite guitars in music. I love these guys.
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