Given that it's taken Detroit band The Doozers five years to make a full-length record after their debut EP, one would have hoped that the results would have justified such a gap in time. They don't really, though there are some pleasures to be had on Becoming an Entity, their album which is out this week.
There's a breezy, radio-ready vibe to stuff like "Make It Tessellate", and for those who hold Vampire Weekend in high regard, this should work too. Single "5-3" is playfully punchy and a highlight here, as is the airy "Ah Shellenté" which recalls -- surprisingly -- late Prefab Sprout. The Scissor Sisters-ish "What's Mine" evidences the most complexity of mood here on Becoming an Entity, and I really enjoyed that one. Still, "Milk: Time" with vocals from bassist Melanie Kelley is so good that it almost sounds like the work of another band. If Doozers want to really win me over, they'd make her the lead singer on the next record.
The Doozers are, despite a five-year gap in recording, a new band. As such, they are a bit too eager to please. Each cut here feels like a radio consultant was peering over the group's shoulders and telling them how to get plays on streaming services, or get rotation on Sirius XMU. That said, there's a place in the world for that sort of thing, isn't there? I guess what I'm trying to say is that there are a couple of songs here where if they came up on the radio this summer, I wouldn't reach for the button to change the channel. Pleasant enough is good enough this time.
Becoming an Entity by The Doozers is out now.
[Photo: euges.film]