San Francisco four-piece Seablite are going to be sick of Lush comparisons when their second album drops this Friday. It's not that Lemon Lights isn't full of bits that more than earn those references, but that this Mt. St. Mtn. release deserves to be assessed fairly. Still, I think it's a case that whatever pop formula Lush found to escape being pigeon-holed as a shoegaze band, these four have also found. There's as much premium here placed on the song construction as the feedback and effects, and, in that sense for sure, the players are on the same wonderful wavelength as Emma and Miki a few years ago.
Chiming single "Melancholy Molly" delights, as does recent gem "Hit the Wall", a churning bit of bright indie-pop. "Laughing Sounds" might be the most lovely thing here, a bit of business that hits at all the sweet spots of all the things I spent so many years listening to. Seablite do this so well, that it's sort of spooky. No pun intended. Lauren Matsui (vocals, guitar) and Galine Tumasyan (vocals, bass) compose this stuff, but points are given to Jen Mundy (ex-Wax Idols) on second guitar and Andy Pastalaniec (Chime School) on drums. The quartet seem to all be pulling in the same direction, and there's a uniformity of purpose on this record that makes Lemon Lights a consistent listen.
For all that's catchy here, "Orbiting My Sleep" and "Pot of Boiling Water" add nuance and mood. I admire Seablite for not ever getting lost in their effects pedals, and that's why I even hesitate to call this shoegaze. But then again, Lush stopped being shoegaze at a certain point too. And like that band, and America's own Velocity Girl, there's a sense that these players grew up on a lot of noisy records only to end up making one that's more modulated and tempered. It's the craft here that's what I want to celebrate. These are big tunes full of gorgeous hooks, and even without the trappings that likely made engineer Mark Gardener (Ride) smile -- no pun intended again -- this is pop of the highest order. But hey, if you like fuzzy guitars, you're going to love this too, you know?
Lemon Lights by Seablite is out on Mt. St. Mtn. on Friday.
More details on Seablilte via their official website
[Photo: Seablite]