Jeremy Aaron
07/25/08, 12:26 PM
The Republic Tigers - Keep Color
Record Label: Chop Shop Records
Release Date: May 6, 2008
It’s late afternoon and it’s overcast. It’s pleasantly cool with the breeze that comes when summer fades into fall. You don your favorite hoodie and embark on a walk along tree-lined suburban streets, or perhaps your school campus. The vibrant colors of autumn are everywhere and some of the leaves have already fallen and crunch underfoot. The one thing missing from this scene is the sound of Keep Color emerging from iPod headphones, further heightening the sensory experience.
This album is simply beautiful. Vocalist Ken Jankowski evokes the Shins’ James Mercer, and the backing vocals and harmonies are truly haunting. The Republic Tigers also employ some electronic touches, but it’s not the basis for the band’s music. Instead, it serves to complement the band’s sound, which is steeped in folk-rock, modern indie-rock and a little classic psychedelia. The result is ethereal and nothing short of astounding.
One listen to the striking opening track “Buildings and Mountains” should be enough to make fans of a wide range of listeners (maybe not those who dismiss anything softer than, say, Pig Destroyer, but you can’t please everyone). It starts out simply enough, with an acoustic guitar line that recalls several tracks from Paper Rival’s latest, Dialog. The song builds into swirling layers of grandeur, a fitting opener for an album that will make you forget who your are and what you’re doing and hold you rapt for its duration.
“Golden Sand” hints at what it might sound like if Interpol were as equally influenced by Woodstock as they are by Joy Division and the band get even more psychedelic on the late-60’s flavored “Feelin’ the Future,” which is a true standout. That’s really saying something because there isn’t a weak track to be found on the album. “Give Arm to Its Socket” is another high point near the end of the album. It’s one of the more understated songs on the record, but it displays the Tigers’ knack with melody. It’s engaging with its subtle nuances rather than overt hooks.
In general, a review should give the reader an idea of what they would hear when listening to the record. If judged by this criterion, the above would be a profound failure. A song-by-song rundown of descriptions and comparisons is, in this case, destined to come up short. This is an album that needs to be experienced first-hand. Let the superlatives and hyperbole end there. Do yourself a big favor and go listen to this, now!
The Shins, VHS or Beta, Pink Floyd
myspace.com/therepublictigers (http://www.myspace.com/therepublictigers)
Record Label: Chop Shop Records
Release Date: May 6, 2008
It’s late afternoon and it’s overcast. It’s pleasantly cool with the breeze that comes when summer fades into fall. You don your favorite hoodie and embark on a walk along tree-lined suburban streets, or perhaps your school campus. The vibrant colors of autumn are everywhere and some of the leaves have already fallen and crunch underfoot. The one thing missing from this scene is the sound of Keep Color emerging from iPod headphones, further heightening the sensory experience.
This album is simply beautiful. Vocalist Ken Jankowski evokes the Shins’ James Mercer, and the backing vocals and harmonies are truly haunting. The Republic Tigers also employ some electronic touches, but it’s not the basis for the band’s music. Instead, it serves to complement the band’s sound, which is steeped in folk-rock, modern indie-rock and a little classic psychedelia. The result is ethereal and nothing short of astounding.
One listen to the striking opening track “Buildings and Mountains” should be enough to make fans of a wide range of listeners (maybe not those who dismiss anything softer than, say, Pig Destroyer, but you can’t please everyone). It starts out simply enough, with an acoustic guitar line that recalls several tracks from Paper Rival’s latest, Dialog. The song builds into swirling layers of grandeur, a fitting opener for an album that will make you forget who your are and what you’re doing and hold you rapt for its duration.
“Golden Sand” hints at what it might sound like if Interpol were as equally influenced by Woodstock as they are by Joy Division and the band get even more psychedelic on the late-60’s flavored “Feelin’ the Future,” which is a true standout. That’s really saying something because there isn’t a weak track to be found on the album. “Give Arm to Its Socket” is another high point near the end of the album. It’s one of the more understated songs on the record, but it displays the Tigers’ knack with melody. It’s engaging with its subtle nuances rather than overt hooks.
In general, a review should give the reader an idea of what they would hear when listening to the record. If judged by this criterion, the above would be a profound failure. A song-by-song rundown of descriptions and comparisons is, in this case, destined to come up short. This is an album that needs to be experienced first-hand. Let the superlatives and hyperbole end there. Do yourself a big favor and go listen to this, now!
The Shins, VHS or Beta, Pink Floyd
myspace.com/therepublictigers (http://www.myspace.com/therepublictigers)