An extraordinary record, Empire Postcards hit all the right points for me as a lover of All-American power-pop. In this case, the artist is Asian American, and mentioning that is important because the lyrics here deftly dissect and examine the American dream, its underbelly, and the longing Asian immigrants feel for the countries of their birth, or the countries of their parents' birth.
But to describe the release in just those terms is to neglect to mention just how supple and inventive the indie-rock is here. On "Eastern Standard", Tsung marries a piano-line that Steve Nieve would have killed for in 1981 to the big hook, even as the guitar licks and vocals suggest Nick Lowe from the same era. The words are smart, and just the right kind of clever. Tsung makes his points so simply and directly that a listener never feels like the themes are at odds with the music. A listener can find points of comparisons in the way that songwriters Ray Davies and the late Adam Schelesinger wrote about their homes. "Taking of a Nation" is more ambitious, the lyrics tackling the idea of America that drew so many here, while acknowledging the sacrifices paid, perhaps through force, by immigrants from Asia in decades earlier. "I sing the body electric on railroad spikes," lingers in the mind.
On some level, the material here recalls that of John Vanderslice, though, sonically, Tsung is aiming for a bigger sound. And while the lyrics may lead one to place this next to the work of St. Lenox, Tsung seems more intent on aiming for mainstream appeal, by hitting at broader, less individualistic concerns. His sound is big here, like something from The Killers on their best singles. And while "Extinction Shoes" is big, Art even, I prefer the peppier bits here, like the Vampire Weekend-isms of "Rome", and the Eighties New Wave of "Adult Supervision", an elegant bit of business. Throughout every cut here, Tsung manages to satisfy both intellectual and emotional goals, the songs filling in a gap a listener to this form maybe never even realized needed to be filled in. Folks who love any one of the acts I've referenced above, let me tell you: do not sleep on this one.
More details about John Tsung and Empire Postcards here.