Since their previous record, the band from New Jersey has turned into a quintet; the sound quality, however, hasn’t changed a bit – thankfully. »Days« floated along so marvelously weightlessly, appearing as relaxed as it was relaxing. Now, three years later, »Atlas« is picking up this very mood exactly where the previous album has left it. The whole sound, made of clear, warbling guitar-lines, springing drums, soft vocals with lyrics full of everyday life without being banal, seems to be a perfect reproduction of earlier pieces. Even formally, there are various parallels between the two records: Ten tracks, track number four being an instrumental, both records around the 40-minutes-marker – ideal to repeat, if you want to listen to it all day long. The tight playing time makes it impossible for the record to get boring in the second half. It’s quite the opposite, really, considering that burners like »Horizon« are to be found at the end of the album. The new material comes along in such a light-footed manner that it’s actually quite tricky to accentuate a single track within the relaxing flow. Don’t get me wrong – we’re not talking about some kind of indistinguishable indie-pop-easy-listening-mash. Instead, you’ll find a unintrusive sound somewhere between The Feelies and Yo La Tengo ’s ballads, inviting you to not really notice it in the background. And still, it’s absolutely worth paying Real Estate your full attention.
Destroyer
Dan’s Boogie
Merge