buffaBLOG - The Buffalo music blog: Album review

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Album review, cloud nothings, here and nowhere else, punk, ryan, ryan wolf — 0 comments

Album Review: Cloud Nothings - Here and Nowhere Else

Cloud Nothings' face-crunching fourth album is a fearless, assertive follow-up to 2012's Attack on Memory. Oscillating between a chaotic rush of existential howls and throaty but tuneful melodies, Here and Nowhere Else pounds its presence out through furious snare slams and clamorous cymbal crashes.

For better or worse, Cloud Nothings are as foggy and nihilistic as their namesake implies. "You're born / you're gone," cries frontman Dylan Baldi repeatedly on "No Thoughts," succinctly whittling the human condition down to its coming and going. As in the songs of similarly-minded peers Titus Andronicus, however, the absurdity and cruelty of existence makes for some pretty addictive punk rock.

Here and Nowhere Else largely consists of blurry, anti-pop assaults of pop song-length. Baldi is a dynamic vocalist, sliding from screams to Strokes-style singing with relentless charisma. Even as he complains that "Life gets boring, it fades away," he seems impassioned enough to annihilate the ennui he fears.

On the seven minute penultimate track, "Pattern Walks," Cloud Nothings' piercing songwriting dissolves into textured noise roughly halfway through, then changes pace yet again. Suddenly upbeat, the song reaches skyward with transcendent drive before the album's catchy closer, "I'm Not Part of Me," arrives for grounded final reflections.

Though Baldi speaks of "moving toward a new idea," what registers stronger is a sense of permanent loss. Ultimately, Here and Nowhere Else suggests that the present may not be as thrilling as the "live for today" crowd insists. Nonetheless, claims of hopelessness aside, Cloud Nothings seem to be making the most of their moment in time.

Grade: B+

ailsa forlenza, Album review, thievery corporation — 0 comments

Album Review: Thievery Corporation - Saudade

Rob Garza and Eric Hilton are busy guys. Since forming Thievery Corporation in the late '90's, they've produced eleven studio albums, with the release of Saudade as their twelfth. Normally when one thinks of Thievery Corporation, they are associated with the acid-jazz movement and over-dubbed relaxing reggae. For the duo, things are shifting with this new release. What drew them together is the Brazilian-born genres of music that can be seen here in purely classical form on Saudade. After straying and exploring several elements of the electronic world, as Garza says, 'it's us coming full circle from electronic music back to something organic.'

The Portugese word 'saudade' means "a longing or something or someone that is lost, a contented melancholy, or, simply, the presence of an absence." This is an appropriate titling for the group and the musical shift they are exploring. Sometimes, in order to get rid of that feeling of loneliness, emptiness, going back home is important. Rediscovering what inspired the adventure in the first place can help make sense of this 'saudade.' Each track is undeniably sensual, supported by Thievery Corporation's subtle electronic compositions on most, and given a mystical, siren like quality through the large roster of guest female vocalists (established friend LouLou Glelichkhani, Nouvelle Vague singer Karina Zeviani, Elin Melgarejo, Argentine Natalia Clavier, and former Bitter:Sweet member Shana Halligan).

Infused in each track are the elements of bossa nova, a Brazilian genre that spans the gap between samba and jazz. Noticeable on the first track of the work, "Decollage" features a soft-strummed classical guitar without a harsh plucking from any sort of pick. It's minor accompaniment from the piano can barely be heard and gives the immediate track an entrancing quality, wholly melancholy. One can hear the aloof, broken quality in LouLou Glelichkani's voice. Cleverly titled, once again, a 'decollage' is the process of creating an artful image by cutting or tearing away. "Meu Nego," "Sola In Citta," and "Quem Me Leva" are partners to "Decollage" in the sense they feature a coquettish touch paired with ruminating, spacious percussive instrumentals.

"Firelight" and "No More Disguise" traverse Thievery Corporation's older sound, with vibrating synths cradling the angelic, distant vocals. Here again the feeling of saudade rises: "The world is an illusion of dreams/ we're playing roles in silent movies" to "our broken shadows rising from the walls, memory recalls visions of this." Stylistically, using only female vocalists definitely relays the delicate and fragile state of the term. Although, not only women feel this type of longing. Only one track on the album is without a vocalist, and that is "Saudade." In classical bossa-nova length, the song is short, about two minutes long, with a pensive guitar melody and percussive clave-pattern. A quiet pause before the richness of the second tranquil half of the album plays.

This is certainly a return to home for Thievery Corporation, and it's a much welcomed return. Their skill for creating a cohesive theme is set in stone. Each song flows within each other like a hazy river, each building upon one another into a waterfall of blissful sound encapsulated by the feeling that overcomes us every so often, saudade.

Grade: B

Album review, Mac DeMarco, matthew danger lippman — 0 comments

Album Review: Mac DeMarco - Salad Days

NOTE: This review was written immediately after returning from a Mac DeMarco concert in Cleveland, in which he and his touring bassist licked me in the face (I gave Mac a Valentine and asked for a kiss in return. He obliged me.) and then I talked to him and essentially stared at him as he smoked outside the venue. So what I’m trying to get at is that this may not be the most objective review. But does objectivity have any place in rock criticism anyway?

Mac DeMarco has had a busy year. The Montreal-born, Brooklyn-inhabiting indie rock prankster (who has described his sound as “jizz jazz,” a mix of surf rock textures, jangle pop guitar tones, and soft-spoken crooning) found himself an indie sensation after releasing debut album 2, working with Tyler, the Creator, and developing a beloved live act, known to feature spontaneous nudity and bizarre, profane covers of played-out classic rock chestnuts like “Tears in Heaven” and “Takin’ Care of Business.” His fanbase has grown immensely, and yet he still dresses like a janitor. He has generally become known as the lovable, immature slacker king of indie pop.

Which makes his new album Salad Days all the more surprising. It is an album of maturity and wisdom, with lush textures and reflective lyrics on aging, feeling lonely, and accepting responsibility. The eponymous, image-obsessed subject of “Blue Boy” is told gently to “calm down, sweetheart, grow up.” The Kinks-y title track reflects on a man who, at age 23, is “acting like [his] life’s already over,” before shaking it off with an assured “act your age and try another year.” The music is about as smooth as bedroom pop can get, with his distinctive guitar tones filled out with melodic basslines and lurching synths.

Of course, it is all delivered with the good humor and easiness that Mac is known for. In modern music lexicon, “mature” is often synonymous with “maudlin,” which DeMarco does not once dip into on Salad Days. For all his newfound maturity, he is still a devoted pop connoisseur, which means that even the heaviest moments on the album are delivered with breezy swagger and irresistible melodies. Album centerpiece “Passing Out Pieces” reflects on the toll his popularity has taken on his private life, with Mac reminding himself that “nothing comes free.” But the song is anchored by a mammoth synth horn line that gives the song a Bowie-esque groove. The catchy melodies of “Goodbye Weekend” make Mac’s requests to not “go telling me how this boy should be leading his own life” sound outright joyous. For all its more serious topics, Salad Days is first and foremost a pleasurable and fun listening experience.

Salad Days is an absolute delight to listen to. It is stacked with assured, gorgeous pop songs infused with the good nature and humor that Mac has become known for. The man once known for his ironic sensibility and bizarre humor has quickly become the most genuine figure in indie rock.

(And he licked my face last night. Frantically. I just wanted to mention that again.)

Grade: A-

~ Post by Matthew Danger Lippman

Album review, range of light, s carey, travis — 0 comments

Album Review: S Carey - Range of Light

S. Carey – better known as Sean Carey, the drummer for Bon Iver – knows how to stay on the top of his solo game. After surprisingly captivating us with single after single of ethereal beauty from his debut effort All We Grow, the soft voiced drummer has returned in 2014 with the transcendent Range of Light. The instrumentalist turned solo singer-songwriter has only continued to perfect his craft with each new song release, supplying us with even sleeker orchestral compilations and fresh environmentally inspired jams. And, yes – he’s done it again.

Building across a sparse, spacey experimental apparatus, album opener “Glass/Film” provides the record's whole ambience within its confines, which is to say, it shows a certain intentional complexity in its orchestration that Carey always strives to add. This follows straight into “Creaking,” another track piggybacking on Carey’s attention to detail, especially in the way it creates a complex soundscape revolving around water droplets, the pitter-pattering of pans, and jittering electronic beeps.

Even Carey’s writing has an astonishingly wholesome, honest tone to it, as is the case in the single “Fire-Scene:” “The city’s fire trapped behind the earth. Digging in your deepest dirt. The reddest hue reminds you of you. Clinging love and falling true.” Bounteous amounts of string-based instruments, pianos, electronic beats, and several other contemporary elements fill the sonic landscape of not only this song, but the entire album, highlighting a much more rounded collection of tracks than what was released with All We Grow. Tranquility flows throughout one of the album's strongest songs (despite the minute and a half timespan) titled “Radiant,” a completely calming assortment of refreshing vocals and earthy tones. Closing out the essentials is “Crown the Pine,” the delicately layered new single that forges a peaceful and serene atmosphere around the xylophone strokes, airy vocals, and elastic, rhythmic beats.

Let’s just point it out that Range of Light is not what you would call radio friendly. However, that’s perfectly acceptable and even better in this case as S. Carey’s album has found its niche within a calming listener ship in places like an office or waiting room, whereas beat-heavy indie-pop or hip-hop fails to mesh with in the same way. Although some of the noises used to inspire this album may sound quite uncommon or off-putting at first, the entire soundscape S. Carey builds in Range of Light is definitely something that needs to be heard first hand.

Grade: A-

Album review, johnny cash, mathew — 1 comments

Album Review: Johnny Cash - Out Amoung The Stars

It’s hard to believe that over a decade after his death, Johnny Cash is still giving us new, baritone-riddled insights to chew on. Or maybe it’s not, given the many stories that seem necessary to accompany a life held by such a prolific personality. In his fourth posthumous release, Out Among The Stars endows listeners with just a few more narratives, realizations, and introspective absurdities from a man who rambled along the volatile path of addiction, god, flailing integrity, and poetic emotion that so characteristically dubbed him country’s humble outlaw—the Man in Black.

Recorded in the early ‘80s and shelved by his then-label Columbia Records, the twelve-tracked compilation features two originals (“Call Your Mother” and “I Came To Believe") nestled comfortably among—though slightly overshadowed by—a series of covers and duets that only seem to bolster Cash’s steady knack for reinventing and transforming the songs of others into refined works of his own.

A lofty title track opens with an existential tale of despair, and in a classically Cash way, strives to pour beauty into the gruesome after a young protagonist meets his tragic demise in a liquor store hold up. As he sings “He knows that when they’re shooting at this loser/ they’ll be aiming at the demons in their lives,” you find yourself sympathizing with the deeper side of a boy who, exhausted by life’s burdensome roads, decides to give up. Reminiscent of the self-proclamations made in “Man in Black,” Cash finds a way to bring us onto his side of the stage, giving some insight into his own drive to serve the man less fortunate.

The ensuing choice of covers seems to echo a similar moccasin-swapping cadence. In offering somewhat of an uncanny juxtaposition, the album powerfully integrates the reflective nature of a man just out of rehab with an air of lightness in his looking to a future promising and bright. Songs like “If I Told You Who It Was,” playful and coy if not strangely upbeat, point towards the lighter side of Cash that does not hesitate to write a “Chicken in Black” or a “Boy Named Sue,” while duet “Baby Ride Easy” serves to kindle up a more endearing look into the strong chemistry he shared with his stage-partner turned wife, June Carter.

Undoubtedly though, the Man in Black leaves his most lustrous mark on another cover, “She Used to Love Me A Lot,” wherein wistful desire underscores the chance-meeting of past lovers. With lyrics like “We could spend the night together/ Take up where we left off/ She used to love me a lot,” the listener is taken on a rolling journey through the hopeful romantic kind of buildup that can only really end in the shattered imaginings of an ego over-inflated by faulty presupposition.

As the album flows on, the comfortable variety of its tracks invariably seems to hold some larger type of purpose inside its long overdue release. In reading the opening note from John Cash Carter, who discovered the now deemed “lost album,” you can’t help but get the sense that it is less a series of forgotten tracks from an old country legend, and more a son’s honest plea to give the world a wholesome and more delicate view onto the multi-faceted man he always knew his father to be.

Grade: B+

~ Post by Mathew Polowitz

Album review, hold steady, ryan, ryan wolf, teeth dreams, the hold steady — 0 comments

Album Review: The Hold Steady - Teeth Dreams

The Hold Steady, as their name suggests, have always been consistent. Each record contains the same classic rock bravado, the same gritty tales of skaters and punks, druggies and barflies, "kids at shows" and their "scene leaders." Jesus is found and lost, beverages consumed and vomited, girls hooked up with then abandoned. And yet, through all the recycled imagery, frontman Craig Finn keeps his storytelling gripping and sympathetic, caring deeply for the life-hungry characters he creates as they binge-and-purge their way through the city's slimy little sins.

Teeth Dreams, a more straightforward affair than some of their records, is no deviation from the Hold Steady's concentrated vision. Although Finn has stated that the album's title was inspired by a David Foster Wallace passage, Jack Kerouac still serves as his main literary muse. Soaked in booze and blood, the songs lift themselves up from the barroom floor to reach toward the flickering light of salvation.

"I Hope This Whole Thing Doesn't Frighten You" kicks the album into gear as a boyfriend introduces the new girlfriend he's brought home for Christmas to a few unsavory connections he's failed to mention. "Spinners" then rocks a little harder, chronicling a single woman's misadventures and deluded mantras ("Salted rims and frosted mugs / It's a big city, there's a lot of love").

The title's teeth dreams appear on "The Only Thing," where the song's speaker obsesses over a woman "sleeping at a storage space by the airport." Her accommodations are an improvement over "The Ambassador" of the follow-up track, however ("There wasn't much diplomatic there / The space between the skin and all the blood").

D.F. Wallace gets referenced again during "On With the Business," a song lamenting the "American Sadness" brought on by consumerism, in which the speaker admits he "said a couple things that probably weren't technically true" during an apparent drug deal. "Big Cig" and "Wait a While" are both rousing odes to ill-chosen romantic entanglements, before things get more harrowing on "Runner's High," a track that apexes amidst a near-death experience.

"Almost Everything," a reverb-drenched acoustic dime leads into "Oaks," the Hold Steady's most expansive song to date. At nine minutes in length, the album finale stretches beyond the city limits toward "mountains all covered in oaks... trees as they turn into smoke."

"Our minds are the windows / Our bodies are screens," concludes Finn, "We scratch / We scrape / And we dream." If the Hold Steady continue to release such solid work, may they scratch and scrape and dream for many records to come.

Grade: B+

ailsa forlenza, Album review, liars, mess — 0 comments

Album Review: Liars - Mess

The Brooklyn-based threesome Liars is hard to peg when it comes to classifying, or relaying their catalogue of music. After moving between New Jersey, Los Angeles, and Berlin, finally settling down in New York City, it is apparent their music morphs alongside them like a nomadic passenger. Liars' seventh studio album, Mess, is glam-electronic at its finest, boasting erotic, dark synths, and deadpan vocals that make me wonder whether these guys are night walkers (see: Game Of Thrones). If the title of the album doesn't already give off a strong hint of the chaotic, musical swirl that follows, the album art might, looking like something out of artist Jim Drain's anthropomorphic, woven sculpture collection.

"Mask Maker" begins with lyrics sung through a vocal changer that say "smell my socks/ eat my face off/ take my face off/ I like your face" that remind me of what a crazed man or woman on bath salts, or PCP, would say. The BPM is paced at an intense start, with sharp glitches of synth in-between, until there is a deep switch of elongated, antagonizing synths and mumbled vocals. Throughout Mess, Liars lack clarification, and perhaps that's the point of it all--to create a work that makes you feel as disheveled as the music. "Mess On a Mission" is enigmatic and redundant, creating a feeling of being strung out for days. Through tossed computer glitches singer Angus Andrew screams in his high-pitched falsetto "mess on a mission" and then transfers a few octaves to drill "facts are facts and fiction's fiction" into our heads, as if the average listener didn't already grasp that concept in the second grade.

Balancing the more chaotic and aggressive songs on Mess are "Boyzone," "I'm No Gold," and "Dress Walker." Using a sexy reversed drum with a trebled siren and growling hi-hat, "Boyzone" brings a fetishistic quality to the music. Vocally, "boy zone" is repeated in monotone. "I'm No Gold" introduces discordant bells that swirl into a heavy-drop kick of synth. The actual composition is intriguing and feels like organized chaos. "Dress Walker" still follows the vein of mysterious vocals, but the low purr of the bass and subtle electronic whine make this song the most put-together of them all.

Grade: C-

Album review, justin a, ringo deathstarr — 0 comments

Album Review: Ringo Deathstarr - God's Dream

Have you ever wondered what it would sound like if Thurston Moore and Wayne Coyne had a rapturous alien love child, that saves all humanity from the zombie-robot apocalypse? Well, wonder no longer, because that said love child is here and it are alive and well, and it goes by the name of Ringo Deathstarr.

God’s Dream marks the sixth release from the Austin, Texas trio. In addition to the CD release (which comes out today), RD will also be releasing a swanky 100 copies of colorized vinyl of the record, available through Neon Sigh and Noyes Records. The colorized vinyls will be hand-numbered and pressed in a mint/magenta split color. An additional 400 records will be pressed in a transparent coke bottle coloring.

God’s Dream is the perfect departure from RD’s 2012 release Mauve. Where Mauve was latent with aggressive guitars, heart thumping drum lines, God’s Dream supplies us with haunting ghostly guitar hooks and drawn out sympathies. God’s Dream is chocked full of distortion and fuzz and is absent of vocals. The vocals are there but they're more like an accent. They are the barrel aged Grappa which accompanies the bacon gelato. The vocals are just there not taking away or adding to the gelato (the music). From the opening track, the ghosty dreamscape that is “Bong Load,” you can tell you are in for a wild ride. You could listen to this record and play ‘name that influence,’ it’d be easy. There’s some Sonic Youth in there, some Flaming Lips (during their psychedelic punk phase), some My Bloody Valentine, and there’s also some Smashing Pumpkins, especially on the songs “Chainsaw” and “Nowhere.”

Instead, let’s talk about what this record is not. This record is not generic, it is not choiceless, and it is not fruitless. God’s Dream is everything that is right with music, and America for that matter. It is genuine. This record screams at you ‘Hello, we are Ringo Deathstarr, this is who we are.’ RD made very deliberate choices on this record as well. You want vocals? Too fucking bad! Go fuck yourself! You want vocals, go make your own record! This is our record! This is our art! This is the kind of record that compels awkward teenagers to pick up guitars.

The real gem on God’s Dream is the face melting “Flower Power.” “Flower Power” stays true to the shoegaze fashion bu starting with an ambitious, energetic, and distorted crescendo guitar riff that builds until your head feels like it’s going to explode. Just when you think you cannot take anymore, they hit us with a sweet, sweet interlude that transports us into a dreamscape wonderland (this is where you find your power animal). By the time you realize that you are listening to the same song, your face has completely melted off your skull piece.

“Flower Power” comes across as two songs in one, something that isn’t inconceivable or unacceptable in the shoegaze genre. Shoegaze is essentially a licence to kill, you get to do whatever the fuck you want and ask for forgiveness later. The real truth is that either you can pull it off or you can’t, and well Ringo Deathstarr pulls it off, and how!

Grade: A

Album review, Future Islands, singles, synth-rock, travis — 0 comments

Album Review: Future Islands - Singles

If you’ve never heard of the synth-rock trio Future Islands, then take a moment to watch their unorthodox yet strangely entertaining performance on the Late Show with David Letterman a couple of weeks ago. That should give you a good idea of the group’s emotional attachment to each performance, particularly the passion lead singer Samuel T. Herring seems to have. Following the success of 2011’s On the Water, the trio went back to the drawing board and came up with the concept of making another album that was rhythmically cohesive while focusing on their fiery beats and catchy hooks. Luckily for them, all of those preconceived thoughts fully embody their fourth studio album, Singles.

Right away, the track listing foreshadows a theme of optimism throughout its collection with songs such as “Spirit,” “Sun in the Morning,” and “Doves” to name a few. The opening track to Singles, “Seasons (Waiting on You),” is a combination of everything Future Islands is sonically: breezy vocal talents, anthemic choruses, blaring guitar strokes, and a touch of other new wave rock and modern pop elements. Herring’s viral performance on Letterman sets a good notion for this album. This notion is that no matter what selection you pick on the album, they pale in comparison to the live performances and pure theatrics that come along with a Future Islands concert. Although, if I had to pick a song off of Singles to try and match their on-stage liveliness, it would either be the appropriately upbeat “Doves” or “Sun in the Morning.”

Singles also serves as a reflective piece bred from the innermost thoughts that arise when one meets an unexpected, detrimental outcome when following their dreams and endeavors. These feelings are best represented in “Fall From Grace” and its cryptic and truly eerie lyrics of “ You were mine when I was young. Why does it take so long? When you were here, it was warm. Now it’s a bitter storm. Now I’m older, turning white, watching days into nights. Now I’m older and I’m grave.” Above all else, Herring’s vocals shine on the track by showcasing his ability to not only sing, but to howl. This sort of emotion again channels its way through to “A Song for Our Grandfathers,” a song equally pleasant in its ambient instrumental textures as well as its graceful ballet inspiring others by simply saying “Let’s be brave.”

Future Islands may have made the risky choice of naming their album Singles because they believed each song stood on its own ground as being an identically potent single choice, however, for the most part, they were correct. Each song has developed a unique sound that’s all its own while still blending into a cohesively synth-rock centered album in true Future Islands fashion. This album most importantly shows that even after three albums behind them, Future Islands is still a band willing to experiment and evolve by amping up the melodious pop quality of their music and staying true to their rock roots.

Grade: B+

Album review, alicia, alicia greco, awake, dive, greco, ISO50, tycho — 0 comments

Album Review: Tycho - Awake

Tycho’s latest album release Awake encompasses all that the word can be defined as. It is uplifting, lively. Tycho (Scott Hansen) has a way with production that evokes the feeling that everything is alright.

From the first and title track of the album, it is that deep breath you take while rising with the morning sun. But not one of those mornings that feels sluggish and dreary, rather, when the air makes you feel alive.

“Montana” which was released as a prior single, is a traveling song. It dips and rises throughout and has a dreamy keyboard pattern that is heard, dignified with the hi-hat and drum patterns, and goes hand in hand with a poignant bassline that cannot be missed. This track has complex soundwork and a rhythm that moves the feet.

The next track on the album, “L” is reminiscent of Tycho’s album Dive. While the first two tracks are very present, this one takes a step back. It is contemplative. More in a spaced out dreamworld, but without the oceanic-themed mastery of that album. At 2:12 the track is joyfully exciting. Although “L” is a bit more laid-back, it still has a danceable aspect to it that fits well into the collection of this album.

A bit heavier on the kickdrum, heavier bass and quicker BPM, “Dye” has a mellow tone and sets itself up as an ideal canvas for a half-time drum n bass remix.

“See,” a personal favorite, starts with claps and a sultry bassline buildup. It has an esoteric vibe that drives the album, maybe giving the listener a chill. A nice little breakdown around the two minute mark is smile-worthy. There are memories of trance melodies scattered throughout.

Apogee is recognized as either the climax of something, or astronomically when the moon’s orbit is furthest from planet earth. The track of the same name may have to relate mostly to the latter. This is not a track that peaks in energy but seems to hit the next step after the relatively turned down three tracks before. “Apogee” is that step furthest back before Tycho brings the sound to the forefront again with “Spectre,” another previously released single. The ranging tonal blips of “Spectre” continue the upbeat joy wave that the album sets out to arouse. In order, this song brings a cyclical vibe, which perhaps coincides with the sphere artwork of the album, done by Hansen himself as design artist ISO50.

The album closes out with "Plains," a minimal sound, and an airiness that is prominent in Dive.

Awake is an album that can be listened to incessantly and still keep you constantly in awe. It inspires self-awakening, opening into an illumination of a unique blend of realism and surrealism. Mesmerizing and comforting, it would not be a stretch to call Tycho a shamanic music man.

Grade: A

Album review, broken social scene, darlings, kevin drew, ryan, ryan wolf — 0 comments

Album Review: Kevin Drew - Darlings

Though Broken Social Scene have been less than sociable as of late, one of the collective's major masterminds is out to prove he still has a pulse. Kevin Drew, who will soon be releasing a collaboration with Andy Kim of "Rock Me Gently" fame, is sending forth his second solo album. And even if it's been years since he ventured out alone, the Canadian songwriter seems dependable as ever.

Ambient-focused and sex-obsessed, Drew is a thoughtful recorder of shattered intimacy and soul-stung longing. Dark, sensual, and often cryptically moving, Darlings simmers in a state of sonic bliss that only Drew can cook up. Even if he seems unable to get past the tortured lyrical themes and semi-sultry musical ideas that have always haunted his work, there is a breathing beauty to the lush new record.

With layered synthesizers, relaxed drum machine beats, and a few chill guitar licks, Drew builds a warm wall of sound his voice crackles along with. Songs like "Body Butter" and "Good Sex" feel more polished and tactful than their titles suggest, bolstered by the careful production. Elsewhere tracks like "My God" slink along sadly with spiritual desperation or swell with epic weight as in the Feist-featuring "You in Your Were."

Ultimately, Darlings is an album that finds Drew comfortable with his talents. For fans of BSS or of Drew himself, the record, like "good sex," should more than satisfy.

Grade: A-