Friday, December 9, 2011

The Papercuts Partake In A Fading Parade


Sounding like a Sunday morning hangover put to music, The Papercuts woozily play dream pop that sounds as though it was recorded in a bathroom with the Shins being forced to participate. The Papercuts latest album, Fading Parade, is a lazy, clouded affair that is the very definition of lo-fidelity. This is a record that is so soaked with reverb and echo it's dripping with those effects. That's not to say that Fading Parade is horrible, because it's anything but. In fact, Fading Parade is a cuddly sort of record that's so tender and so fragile that you're almost afraid to listen to all ten songs for fear of it coming apart.

With its lo-fi aesthetics in check and an overwhelming sense of melancholy about it, The Papercuts miraculously sound as if they're having a great time making a quiet racket. The songs that make up Fading Parade waft on by like a spring breeze and seem so unobtrusive that you just might miss them if they weren't a bit loud. This truly is like listening to the Shins on a five dollar budget and a bevy of effects pedals. It's really nice stuff that doesn't hit you over the head but instead sneaks its way into your soul with haunting melodies, sublime guitar work, and a sense of foreboding. It's all those elements that really elevate this from being a self-destructive mess to being something of fragile beauty.

From the slow plodding nature of, "I'll See You Later I Guess," to the near pop hit of, "Do You Really Wanna Know," Fading Parade is the sound of a lazy Sunday morning and all the Tylenol you can muster. It's a hazy crash back into reality that subtlety sounds like the end of the world. Great stuff then.

No comments:

Post a Comment