For a label famous for jangle-pop and shoegaze, the new one from Tony Jay adds a whole slew of new flavors to the Slumberland Records recipe-book. Called Perfect Worlds, the album from the band fronted by Michael Ramos (Cindy, Sad Eyed Beatniks, etc.) is full of music that is wonderfully laconic, dreamy in all the right ways, and quietly lush. I liked getting lost in this soundscape is what I'm trying to say.
Pieces like "Falling Sand" suggest commonalities with the approach of His Name is Alive, while the more directly affecting "Just My Charm" adds in a touch of Spiritualized and Codeine. This is not slow-core or whatever other bullshit genre-label you'd throw at any of those bands I've mentioned, but there's a sound here that is low-key hypnotic, and thoroughly engrossing on its own laid-back terms. "The Switch on the Light" especially resonated with me, its blend of early Grandaddy-style balladry with the warped-pop of Peel Dream Magazine suggested a whole new style to these ears. It doesn't hurt that the melodies here reveal themselves with a deftness that's impressive. "Feel for Yesterday", another real highlight here, nearly drifts away, but there's a quiet precision here to the faint hooks of the tune that really seduced me.
Michael Ramos, with assistance from Cameron Baker, Kelsey Faber, Karina Gill, and Alexis Harper occupy their own world here. This is not dream-pop as much as it's the sound of a dream barely remembered. Perfect Worlds nudges itself into your consciousness and the whole mood conjured up here -- and I do mean conjured -- is magical in its subtlety. Fans of Galaxie 500 (obviously), should find things that will resonate here, but praise goes to Ramos for finding a new way to tackle such lovely music, with simplicity and grace.
Perfect Worlds by Tony Jay is out on Friday via Slumberland Records.
[Photo: Karina Gill]