“Bouquet” by Pinback
The Pitchfork review of Autumn Of The Seraphs makes a good point. They claim that Pinback’s last proper album, Summer In Abbadon has more of an autumnal, frostbitten sound where as this new one feels more like summer fare. They’re right. When I go back and listen to its warm-ish tones and relaxed rhythms I can’t help but think of the lazy days of the school-free season. That helps these days. New Mexico weather has been chilly and gray. It’s almost possible to set the album on repeat and huddle in front of the speakers, hands extended, rubbing away the chill.
Pinback is intricate, precise and articulate indie pop music. The album is layered in ways that reveal new insights with each repeated listen. If you want to get an feel for the songs you have to listen to them more than once. “Bouquet” was no exception. There’s a division that happens at about 2:50 which turns the undercurrent of tension with which the song begins into a lustrous lament. The final lyrics go something like this:
You can take that how you want
I adjust the time
For you to be hereDon’t go
And you taste my tears
And we share our soulsI’m walking on my own
I’m walking all alone
But this is no straight recital of verse. True to Pinback form the voices leapfrog over the words, piecing music from lines in a decidedly non-linear fashion, lines that seem more constructed by how they sound than what they mean, and come up with something both potent and pretty.
Pinback: official site, itunes, amazon, nice fansite
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