Curtains For You – What A Lovely Surprise To Wake Up Here (Music Review)
By Andrew Duncan • Dec 29th, 2009 • Category: Categories, Indie Pop, ReviewsCurtains For You
What A Lovely Surprise To Wake Up Here
Spark And Shine Records
Rating: 4 out of 5
It’s rare I like my pop to be glossed over in a fabricated Beatles sense. No way! I like my pop like it came out of a dirty glass or some backyard shed. My pop has to be rough around the edges like those late ’90s K Records or the crazed Elephant 6 stuff is out of this world.
Yet, Curtains For You is one of those rarities where the shine on this five piece is…well…just fine with me.
Surprisingly instead of a big sound from the five members, what you get on What A Lovely Surprise To Wake Up Here is well-written songs that fuses traditional iconic pop elements with accentuated sounds from all around that bleed into the compositions.
Your immediate reaction to the quirkiness of the opener “Nuclear Age” is an immediate attraction to later-career XTC. The Beach Boys style is blatant. Their melodies make the ‘60s take a double take. For a band who can take a song like “Dead World” and fuse Southern gothic with California dreaming and make it sound so dreamy is worthy of the listener’s attention.
Not just that but the powerful connection each member has and how well they interact with each other raises an eyebrow or two. This is not your run-of-the mill rehashed pop. What A Lovely Surprise To Wake Up Here is fresh and vibrant. the music is constantly flowing and ever-changing, sometimes building upon itself like on “Dumb Angel” or you have”Small Change” where it presses forward like a ragtime party at a parade or a burlesque bounce deep down in the heart of Bourbon. It’s these animated moments that really brings out the charm in this band.
Curtains For You - Small Change (from the album "What A Lovely Surprise To Wake Up Here": Play Now | Play in Popup | Download
Andrew Duncan is a journalist who has migrated to the forces of academia. He has written for various publications including Chord, Heckler, Readyset...Aesthetic, and a vast array of alternative press contributions. When not roaming the streets of Indianapolis, he is either addicted to KXCI, making music, or striving to watch every film listed on IMDB.
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[...] Willis wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptWhat A Lovely Surprise To Wake Up Here is fresh and vibrant. the music is constantly flowing and ever-changing, sometimes building upon itself like on “Dumb Angel” or you have”Small Change” where it presses forward like a ragtime party … [...]