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Summer Cats – Songs for Tuesdays
Unless you are on a whirlwind vacation or the hero of a highly unlikely action movie, chances are, your summer is not exactly a hotbed of excitement. Along with the crappy summer job or required class at the local community college, there is the heightened chance of dying of heat stroke. Not very cinematic. Thankfully, most of the time, all you need to lift your spirits is the perfect summer soundtrack, and Summer Cats’ debut LP, Songs for Tuesdays, is just that.
Right from the start, with full-throttle opener, “Let’s Go,” you get the general feel of the album: relentlessly catchy, cheerful pop. But unlike a lot of today’s indie pop, the guitars are trenchant enough to hold their own against the sugary melodies and sing-along choruses. Not to mention there is nary a glockenspiel heard throughout the album, which is a rare thing among pop bands these days.
It’s worth noting that they managed to put together a sunny pop album without it being oversaturated with cuteness. Even a twee glutton like me can get sick of cutesy girl-boy harmonies after a while, but the lyrics have just the right amount of neurosis to keep things amusing. Songs like “In June” and “Wild Rice” are a bit more low key, but they provide the perfect balance of melancholy and sweet that bring to mind the Field Mice and the Lucksmiths at their catchiest.
Striking up contrasts is the key to keeping an indie pop album interesting, and Summer Cats do it remarkably well by infusing their infectious melodies with musings on heartbreak and rejection. It’s an age-old formula, but they do it with a sharp sense of humor. On one of the album’s many sadsack anthems, singer Hugh Owen begs his girl to “chuck [him] in the ‘maybe’ pile,” a concession that is sure to ring true for a legion of dejected pop fans. But all the gloominess is skillfully handled in a tongue-in-cheek manner, as seen in tracks like “Lonely Planet,” where “I love you” is sung in eight different languages, only to be followed with the chorus, “eight different ways which you won’t say to me.” It may be harsh, but it’s the kind of sentiment best served with a side of jangly guitars and ample ooh la la’s.
With its adherence to grim reality and undeniably catchiness, Songs for Tuesday is a fitting soundtrack for anyone stuck with a lackluster summer, one that is completely devoid of big explosions or robot uprisings. It may not have the expected subject matter one would expect from a fun summer album, but it still offers plenty of entertainment, all the while keeping your IQ level perfectly intact.
Unless you are on a whirlwind vacation or the hero of a highly unlikely action movie, chances are, your summer is not exactly a hotbed of excitement. Along with the crappy summer job or required class at the local community college, there is the heightened chance of dying of heat stroke. Not very cinematic. Thankfully, most of the time, all you need to lift your spirits is the perfect summer soundtrack, and Summer Cats’ debut LP, Songs for Tuesdays, is just that.
Right from the start, with full-throttle opener, “Let’s Go,” you get the general feel of the album: relentlessly catchy, cheerful pop. But unlike a lot of today’s indie pop, the guitars are trenchant enough to hold their own against the sugary melodies and sing-along choruses. Not to mention there is nary a glockenspiel heard throughout the album, which is a rare thing among pop bands these days.
It’s worth noting that they managed to put together a sunny pop album without it being oversaturated with cuteness. Even a twee glutton like me can get sick of cutesy girl-boy harmonies after a while, but the lyrics have just the right amount of neurosis to keep things amusing. Songs like “In June” and “Wild Rice” are a bit more low key, but they provide the perfect balance of melancholy and sweet that bring to mind the Field Mice and the Lucksmiths at their catchiest.
Striking up contrasts is the key to keeping an indie pop album interesting, and Summer Cats do it remarkably well by infusing their infectious melodies with musings on heartbreak and rejection. It’s an age-old formula, but they do it with a sharp sense of humor. On one of the album’s many sadsack anthems, singer Hugh Owen begs his girl to “chuck [him] in the ‘maybe’ pile,” a concession that is sure to ring true for a legion of dejected pop fans. But all the gloominess is skillfully handled in a tongue-in-cheek manner, as seen in tracks like “Lonely Planet,” where “I love you” is sung in eight different languages, only to be followed with the chorus, “eight different ways which you won’t say to me.” It may be harsh, but it’s the kind of sentiment best served with a side of jangly guitars and ample ooh la la’s.
With its adherence to grim reality and undeniably catchiness, Songs for Tuesday is a fitting soundtrack for anyone stuck with a lackluster summer, one that is completely devoid of big explosions or robot uprisings. It may not have the expected subject matter one would expect from a fun summer album, but it still offers plenty of entertainment, all the while keeping your IQ level perfectly intact.
06/28/2009 22:52:34 ♥ kateg (
) ♥ myspace.com/summercats ♥ slumberlandrecords.com
