The Drums <\/i>is quite listenable, as it damn well should be. The band of the same name lists The Smiths as an influence, after all, and is stuck in the 1980\u2019s. <\/p>\n
I wouldn\u2019t consider it unusual to play this album several times in a row \u2013 a testament to its conciseness if nothing else. The production relies on reverb and gloss, an appropriate combination given that the band\u2019s lyrics attempt to be darkly cute. Sometimes this tone is very effective. \u201cIt Will All End In Tears\u201d is anchored on a sensitive line, but the song has a spooky vocal that counteracts any whininess. In contrast, \u201cBook Of Stories\u201d drifts into cutesy territory that I deem unpleasant: \u201cI thought my life would get easier \/ Instead it\u2019s getting harder \/ Instead it\u2019s getting harder \/ I thought my life would get easier \/ Instead it\u2019s getting darker \/ Instead it\u2019s getting colder \/ Without you.\u201d <\/p>\n
But I excuse lyrics like these because the album is generally fun. As dark as The Drums want to be (they cite Joy Division and The Wake, for example), it would be difficult to be in a bad mood while listening to any of these songs. Part of the pleasure is the breezy pacing. Most of these tracks are less than four minutes, and none of them last five. Additionally, simple and note-heavy guitar licks give many songs considerable momentum, synthesizers make for dreamy backgrounds, and drummer Connor Hanwick is a beat tactician far more likely to make your toes tap than impress you, or turn you off, with any skill he may possess. Of course, the key is singer Jonathan Pierce, who understands the importance of a hook. <\/p>\n
\u201cSkippin\u2019 Town\u201d and \u201cForever And Ever, Amen\u201d are the most infectious examples of everything The Drums can do (i.e., the songs supposedly demonstrate my personal claims about the band\u2019s sound from the last two paragraphs). On the other side of the spectrum is \u201cI Need Fun In My Life.\u201d I\u2019m sure we all share the need in the song\u2019s title, but lethargic guitar playing and restrained vocals aren\u2019t fun. This song is the opposite of what The Drums should be doing. \u00a0<\/p>\n
The Drums <\/i>should be sampled by anyone who likes 1980\u2019s guitar-driven pop. I could see the band having a broader fan base than other indie acts, but we\u2019re not talking about anything groundbreaking here, just kinda dark guys who write catchy music with lyrics that perhaps The Beatles could have sang better. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":73,"featured_media":30511,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"artist":[8651],"rating":[5617],"class_list":["post-42177","review","type-review","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","artist-the-drums","rating-rating-b-plus"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/42177","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/review"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/73"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42177"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/42177\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30511"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42177"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=42177"},{"taxonomy":"rating","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rating?post=42177"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}