Credit: Album Artwork
Philadelphia’s Literature, have released their second album album Chorus. Having working their way up the pop/rock scene with their funkadelic sound, their new material is here at last.
The album is a combination of psychedelic trance and classic rock vocal waves that have similar sounds to The Smiths and The Cure.
Straight away the first track, ‘The Girl, The Gold Watch And Everything‘ swings us in to a buoyant, perky beat, that’ll get your feet moving and your head bobbing along. Following a romantic, renaissance theme, many tracks explore electro, light percussion and delicate strings to emphasize the mood of the music. The vocals of Kevin Attics sound polished, setting the professional tone for only the second album for the band.
With tracks such as ‘Tie-Dye (Your Life)‘ the band can appeal to a niche indie/rock following, immersing vocals into the busy dynamics of sound. As well as featuring a pretty solid guitar solo that will uphold the rock lovers.
However Chorus works in a way to please a few musical ears, put on a track like ‘Chime Hours‘ and you have relaxation music. Even the album title track itself remains in a haze, backing vocals that air throughout. Still adopting the theme of lustful emotions, but immerses the sentiment in a whirlwind of soft rock. Furthermore, tracks such as ‘Jimmy‘ will please those looking to hear of more rock infused melodies.
Finally, the album ends with ‘Kites‘, which releases a realist, relatable note of putting up with the bad in relationships and accepting what it is you want from your endeavors. What we can appreciate from this band is the effort to explore the different dynamics of musical score and flow. Too often the machinery of the mainstream can take it’s toll to churn out the same beat, rhythm and even the same subject matter. Literature may reflect and remind us of old iconic artists, but with their modern twist on the electronic sounds, they at least attempt to find something different with their music.
It may not be the hard rock we are used to, but in any sense they try to find a unique voice – to fill a white noise in music with a more complicated, mystified sound of their own.
Literature‘s work on this record has created catchy and well-crafted tunes. After their long time vacated in the studio has enabled the band to highlight their talent and sound on point. Chorus is one of the most exciting pop records in years, bringing back nostalgia from sounds of the greats and marks Literature at true contenders.
