ZapTown

Freelance Whales
Weathervanes
Frenchkiss/Mom + Pop
Rating: 2.8 out of 5

Link: http://www.freelancewhales.com/

Wake up! Time to get up! You feel the sun beam in your face? The dew being shaken off the blades of grass? The animals stirring about? As refreshing as that first cup of coffee and as strange as if they turned “Farmville” into a musical (let’s not get any ideas people), “Generator First Floor” is slightly bluegrass while being predominately thick-rimmed children’s literate.

And that’s not a bad thing given how incredibly well-versed these songs are. However, when you get to a song like “Hannah,” you are not sure if you mixed up your Death Cab For Cutie CD with Weathervanes or if you accidentally popped in that latest Owl City song when listening to “Starring,” just substitute fireflies for butterflies.

“Broken Horse” is one of the better campfire tales where words whisp around applewood smoke and crickets cheer to the ghostly haunts deep in the forest. The whispering vocals only substantiates the delicacy of the night. It’s when everyone joins in where you feel the strength in this band.

Despite my love for the band’s songwriting, most of this album would work best as an instrumentals, which is where their forte lies. The banjo, the acoustic guitar with its notes dancing with a xylophone to create a tapestry of illustrious soundscapes and overlays the subtle rhythmic pulses and barely make a sound at times. It works to mystical effects in an animated context, but often cannot stand entirely on its own.

Minimal at times, it goes to show that the vocals are used to fill in the spaces and keep the silence from being too loud. It’s unfortunate that theory does not always work to their advantage with only a few songs that really stand out. It’s a band that, even though on their way, need to continue finding their sense of identity and not be afraid to dive deeper into experimentation.

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