There was this study or something going around a week or two ago that said most people stop listening to new music by the time they're 33. It didn't surprise me, but it kind of depressed me. One of the things that I live for is that feeling of clicking play on an album, maybe just having it play in the background as I'm doing something else; and then, suddenly, becoming more attentive. That moment when I turn and cock my head to one side and kind of say, "Now what do we have here?"
Philly's Hop Along are a band who have been kind of sitting there, in my peripheral vision, for a while. There was the show on my birthday back in January when they played with Beach Slang at Baby's All Right. I couldn't make that one work out. Friends and people whose opinions really matter to me have been exhorting everyone to listen to Hop Along's new record through status updates and tweets. Then, the band played Baby's All Right again; but it was on Mother's Day.
I decided yesterday finally to sit down (and even go for a run!) with Hop Along's sophomore LP, Painted Shut. From the first moments of album-opener "The Knock," -- the drums, the chunky guitar chords, the increasing urgency in Frances Quinlan's voice -- I started to get excited. By the time the piano on "Horseshoe Crabs" blended into the alt-country inflected, angst-ridden masterpiece, Painted Shut was making a strong case for my "New Favorite Album."
On "Waitress," Joe Reinhart's guitar pairs with Quinlan's cracking wail to create the swirling frenzy that must have been running through her mind as she had to wait on a customer with whom she had an unpleasant past, to play server to someone who made her feel small. "I don't know why I worry. I mean, maybe she didn't recognize me."
The kind of shoegazy glide guitar on "Texas Funeral" caught my attention immediately. The stream-of-consciousness lyrics held it. "Powerful Man" is an upbeat-sounding power pop song about witnessing a father strike his 8, maybe 10, year-old child. "He said, 'She's not gonna help you,'" but she tried.
The album closes with "Sister Cities." The song combines so many of the things I love: pop, fuzz, a great bass line, big guitar solos, and Quinlan's emotional delivery. I've listened to it probably 20 times since yesterday. Quinlan reminds me of Waxahatchee's Katie Crutchfield or Cayetana's Augusta Koch in the way she opens herself up and just goes for it. It's almost perfect.
I'm 45. 12 years past due when it comes to listening to new music, apparently. I hope I never get to the point where that feeling of discovering your "New Favorite Album" goes away. It's a beautiful feeling that brightens the world and makes everything seem just that much better for a while, no matter what's going on in your head.
Hop Along's Painted Shut is out now on Saddle Creek Records. My vinyl is on its way.
No comments :
Post a Comment