The Swimmers - People Are Soft [Album]

Mad Dragon

October 23, 2009, 09:31 PM

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Lock your doors, there are mischievous CD swappers around. That's all I can put it down to. Earlier on today I listened to this new album called "People Are Soft" by The Swimmers. I heard a decent little record but one overshadowed by its influences, touches of the Rutts, echoes of the Bunnymen and lacking it's own identity.

I went out for a while, did some other work, came back and damn me, those devilish swappers had been in and replaced the CD I'd been listening to with something that looked the same but was now absolutely swimming (sorry) in it's own voice and identity. How strange is that? Seriously in the space of a few hours and a second listen, this improved inestimably to a slight modern indie miracle. While my back was turned it found its own voice, make that voices - collective - pulling together to produce one great big cohesive ensemble sound. Sure it still wears its influences on its sleeve but what really matters is what you do with that, and in this case that's plenty.

The biggest thing to love about this is the wondrous, joyful nature of the noise coming out of them, helped no end by the clappy percussion. Right up there too is is the multi-tracked layered vocal. I'm not sure the lyrics are always such tales of joy though - "Outside the oxygen is wasted on the healthy and free" - indeed. This is The Swimmers second album, the last one "Fighting Trees" was released just last year. That got many rave reviews; not from me. I'm taken by and applaud the slight, but significant journey they have made from there to here, from what I found dismissable as pleasant twee novelty glockenspiel band to the notable thing we have today.

Actually I wish I'd bought shares a couple of years ago in the the company that sells those plastic ANGEL Glockenspiels, I've heard so many of them recently. Next year it will be ukuleles, trust me. There's much more going on in "People Are Soft" though. I'm pretty darn turned on by the buzzy, tacky feel to the keys, more emphasis on synths has proved a notable success. 'Shelter' sets out like the album means to go on - an indie-fied big band opener with whoops and slides over a nicely slightly muted main vocal.

'A Hundred Hearts' springs from a lovely multi-voiced opening, evoking an Arcade Fire feeling for a moment before it delves into its tale of trying to share one heart, not a hundred. It'll all end in splinters my dears, mark my words. Not all is sweetness and light - the nursery rhyming rhythm of 'Dresses Don't Fit' annoys, a hangover of where they were previously. Move on. It's OK though, we're saved next up by the nice rocky touch of 'Drug Party,' even with added bells over saw guitar. 'What This World Is Coming To' delights with its clapped stop-start chorus vocal versus Seattle grunge guitar
'Give Me The Sun' which steps in like some audition for a 1969 girl group - for a second or two at least, before the lead voice goes off, and up, and down, delightfully.

The band are Steve Yutzy-Burkey, Krista Yutzy-Burkey, Scott French and Rick Sieber. They're from Philadelphia and they tell a tale of re-building their studio along with their sound. Born of adversity then come good things, obviously. Burn down the house next time? They've put their faith in MAD Dragon, a record label run by Drexel University. It's student-run and, on this basis, a damn fine choice.

Definitely a keeper, "People Are Soft" is out November 3rd.

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