Mew - And the Glass Handed Kites

So I've had this record for a while now and I can hands down say that it's one of my favorite albums of all time. This band is prolific and they've definitely inspired an entire genre of post-indie, psych-indie, whatever you want to call 'em Nordic bands. It's dark at times, gorgeous at others, viscous and delicious, synth-drenched, melodic, rhythmically experimental, and did I mention that they're a three piece? Yeah. Everyone sings beautifully and uniquely too. High-pitched, angelic, low-pitched and dark, you name it. Some of the melodies are really peculiar and the phrasing is very very unique. It's never dissonant though. The band is a little too dedicated to beauty to have dissonant vocals, though you may run into some strange melodically dubious guitar work. Some songs are more upbeat and immediate favorites. "Special" and "Apocolypso" are driving pieces with super funky guitar work that's totally and undeniably original. I have no idea where they came up with this guitar style but the breaks on "Apocalypso" are vaguely reminiscent of a totally non-corny U2. What do I mean by this? The finished product is epic from start to finish, and the guitar work is derivative of The Edge's work on Joshua Tree. It's very ambient and moody but very very syncopated and precise as well. Detail whores rejoice. We have Mew to reignite our passion for all that moody shit we used to listen to and connect with emotionally before we became jaded detail whores. Some of the guitar work is borderline noisy, but its such a consistent style that it works even in the context of such a melodic band. "Why You Looking Grace" is a great example. Noisy busy guitars accompany minimalist keyboards and the anthemic "Your mouth is hiding / You've got smiling eyes" chorus whose lyrics evolve as the song progresses until the epic build-up in the end that one can't help but hum along to after the song dies out unexpectedly. The drumming on this record is great as well and really helps to bring out the syncopated guitar-work. Look for interesting tom beats and minimalist predictable beats with major curves thrown in as they weave through different time signatures and grooves. It's patient. It's not flashy. It's tasteful. This band is always locked in rhythmically and they don't ever sacrifice rhythmic density and complexity for melody and vice-versa. It's truly balanced. Some of it's dancey, some of it's depressing, some of it's uplifting, they do it all but it's still "Mew" with no gimmicks and no sacrificing their identity as a band. I hope you love this album as much as I do.

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