When you have 20 members in your band it seems it would be nearly impossible to not let your songs succumb to a ‘too busy for their own good’ problem. Fortunately for us, the sophomore album from Mother Falcon never finds itself in that predicament, despite its use of horns, pianos, glockenspiels, violins, cellos and multiple voices. Being fully aware of the less is more concept, as well as being extremely skilled at their respective instruments, these Austin, Texans have penned a chamber and orchestral pop album that’s hard to not become enamored with.
One of their many and maybe not noticeable strengths is the ability to start a tune off soft, fragile and sparse before building into soaring swells of elegance. “Porcelain” and “My Majesty Of Madness” are both prime examples of this. The former leads off with calm female vocals that give way to acoustic guitars and cellos and the latter begins with violins and keys before becoming fuller into an almost cinematic scope. Of course, this isn’t always the case, as disc standout “Marigold” starts off with a burst of energy that keeps the pace strong throughout.
Two of the most interesting tracks (not that there is a dull moment) are the Balkan influenced “Sleep” and “Dirty Summer,” where the instrumentation is even more playful and animated and shows exceptional talent. When people tend to think of music that entails these sorts of instruments, we don’t often think of rugged or forceful. But here we’re treated to occasional yelping, gang vocals, and loud strings amid the very sophisticated beauty that lingers everywhere.
An outfit that began as a pack of college students who wanted to experiment with different musical ideas, well, they did just that and it most likely turned out better than expected. Describing this is no easy task. Imagine Arcade Fire or Broken Social Scene with gym memberships and you get some idea of where Mother Falcon is coming from.
