The new one from Emotional is the sort of record that sounds like a dozen others, and yet still seems wholly unique. The Band, out tomorrow on Long Live Death Records, contains a lot of indie-pop that is by turns affecting and quietly adventurous.
If "Heaven Couldn't Wait" vaguely recalls Big Star circa Third, the superb "Ballad of the Band" brings to mind T. Rex, despite sharing a song title with a great Felt cut. Elsewhere, the spry "Jealousy" picks up the pace a bit, while the bright "TV and Newspapers" vaguely references key moments from the back-catalog of Stephen Malkmus as a solo artist. The Band was partially produced by Alex Brettin from Mild High Club and one can hear a trace of that act's simple melodicism on tracks like "Ain't Going Back", one of the standouts on this record, even if some of this ("Japan", for instance) is far more upbeat and vibrant than certain selections on the last Mild High Club record.
The Band is the second album from Emotional and it's a pleasant release. There's nothing earth-shaking here but the sounds made by this group so successfully recall earlier acts that it's hard not to like this a lot.
The Band from Emotional is out tomorrow on Long Live Death Records.
[Photo: Mark Quines]