22 September, 2007

The Shins en Espanol

Say What You Want to Say to Me by Spanish for 100 just says everything, doesn't it? Well, maybe not the title by itself, but the music has a lot to say. You'll regret not having listened to "Limerance Be" when your friendly, neighborhood blogger told you to when you hear it on the soundtrack of another Zach Braff movie. Not that it's bad to be liked by Zach Braff (we love you, Zach!), it's just that after Natalie Portman made "New Slang" a hit, and that awkward guy in your local record store tried to use the Garden State quote as a pickup line, "New Slang" lost a little bit of its poignancy. I'm not here to write about that old Shins album (so two albums ago), I'm actually here to write about the new album from Spanish for 100.

Whatever their name means, this band is making music that should be heard. I would describe the sound of Say What You Want to Say to Me as orchestral lo-fi, which seems like an oxymoron, but makes more sense when you actually listen to some of the songs. This album sounds like a collaboration between Remy Zero and the Shins.

"Attack!" has a plodding yet manic energy, with swirling guitar noise and a steady rhythm. The lyrics are similar to beat poetry, where the cadence and sound of the words is as important as the meaning. "Sangria" is the second song on the album, but a definite departure from "Attack!". Although the two songs are recognizable as album siblings, they have different personalities. "Sangria" is an orchestral song of musical highs and lows, and the rhythm and timing are experimental. " Say What You Want To Say" pulls in a little country influence, but maintains some of the coolness of Seattle alternative rock. You can imagine this band in plaid and jeans, rocking in nature or in the city. I love the fact that the vocals are almost more melodic than the instrumentals in this song. "Snakebite" and "Sweet Surprise" follow that same country line, and you can imagine these songs as the soundtrack to open spaces and starry nights. "Limerance Be" happens to be the single, and is a gorgeous song with soft but strong vocals. For anyone who doesn't know what limerence is (I had to look it up), it's a phsychological concept from the 1970s (Dorothy Tennov, Love and Limerence: The Experience of Being In Love) that is basically the idea of an involuntary attachment to a person. It isn't quite love, but more like a long infatuation. The sighing nature of the song seems to be a perfect match to the notion of a limerent relationship, and I expect to hear this song on the soundtrack to an indie romantic comedy in the near future. The rest of the album moves in an even more expiremental direction, and I think I enjoy the songs "Red", "Thought Twice", "She's a Robber", and "Quick As Ashutter" because of this experimentation. The band is playing with sound, but not to the point where the music becomes unlistenable, just to the point where the songs' interesting qualities are at their peak. I would recommend this album to any musiclover, but especially to those who have lost a little of their limerent feelings towards the Shins, but who need a soundtrack to their own indie romantic comedy.

No comments: