Tuesday, April 26, 2016

Parakeet, KASA, 2016

Album Review

Last Friday night was the first night of Passover. Ever since we've been together, CoolMom has included me on her tradition -- first bringing me to Seders hosted by her aunt and uncle, then having me accompany her to one held by one of our grad school classmates in Seattle, and finally having us host our own. This year, we weren't too on the ball in terms of knowing when Passover started or anything; so, on Thursday night, CoolMom told me that she'd invited her mom over for dinner on Friday and that I needed to prepare while she was at work. Um... ...OK.

I had plans for heading to Asbury Park Yacht Club that night, and I wasn't sure how I'd be feeling after a big holiday dinner and wine. The bill at APYC included Volt Direction, a project of John Herguth and Alicia Testa that I'd seen before and really enjoyed, and the UK's Parakeet, a relatively new band I knew nothing about. I was full and sleepy but decided I couldn't pass up the opportunity to see something new and different in Asbury Park; so, after we hustled mominlaw out the door, I was off. Such a good decision.

Parakeet at Asbury Park Yacht Club

I'm no expert on electronic music, but I really like Volt Direction. There's just something about the way Testa's vocals intertwine with the sounds, and the band are unique in the rock heavy Asbury Park. Parakeet blew me away with their short set, and I spent the rest of the weekend listening to their debut full-length, KASA.

The project of Mariko Doi (Yuck) and James Llewellyn Thomas (The History of Apple Pie, whose 2013 single "See You" is still a favorite of mine), Parakeet inhabit a space somewhere between dream pop and shoegaze, aka "Maybe CoolDad's Favorite Space in Popular Music." On KASA, Parakeet move among quiet, sweet, and more loud and aggressive sounds with ease. Even with this varied approach -- sometimes within the same song -- KASA is a pretty cohesive collection.

The album opens with the acoustic sway of "Pine Hill," showcasing some of the glue that holds everything together which are Doi's distinctive and distant vocals. The other running theme is the canvas of shoegaze guitar sounds that almost all of the songs paint over with guitar leads or pop melodies. "Pink Noise" and "Lie Lie Lie" are swirling dream pop, while the airiness and expanse of single "Summer Apathy" are grounded by a bass line that runs through the whole song.

"Just a Little Longer" is a standout as Doi's vocals intertwine with the lead guitar making the song sound almost like a duet. "Sugar Rush" is the heaviest track on the album -- and the one the band closed with on Friday to a great response -- but, through all the fuzz and big chords, Parakeet's pop leanings are still evident. The most overtly shoegazy track on KASA is probably "Sugar Candy Mountain" with its "glide guitar" sound. Closer "Seabreeze Lullaby" is a little more upbeat and fast-paced than the title might suggest and throws in a few curveballs adding some organ sounds in among the squall of guitar.

So, what have we learned? Don't let unfamiliarity or a food coma dissuade you from heading out to catch something new -- especially when it's FREE ferchrissake. You may find something you'll love now and for years to come.

KASA is available now as a cassette and digital download from Parakeet's Bandcamp page. You can also listen to it / grab it from your favorite digital music store.



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