Faunts
Feel.Love.Thinking.Of.
Friendly Fire; 2009
I’m a proponent of perfectionism in the studio, the ability to prepare each track until there isn’t a singular stray note or loose melodic end that could spoil a good musical dish. Admittedly, I listen to (and enjoy) my fair share of rock, punk, and hardcore albums, and I revel in any given group’s propensity to record fast, loose, raw, and unscripted, just as long as the actual music is worthwhile. Yet, there are times when I want to bless my ears with the occasional pop record, right down to the perfectly formed bass lines, precise drumming, and shimmering waves of guitars riffs and keyboard swells, to mention the fact that the vocalist can sing well and the listener can understand the lyrics without an decoder ring.
The only issue with adhering to such an ethos during the recording process is that the band runs the risk that its songs will sound too pretty and too perfect, denuded of any teeth or edge. And in my ears, this is exactly what brings down the otherwise lovely effort that is Feel.Love.Thinking.Of., the new album from Faunts. This Canadian outfit has provided the music world with a ten-song project that brings together gloomy, spacey pop with a polite horde of electro/synthy patterns and tops it off with ethereal male vocals. With collected nods to post-rock, M83, Air, and even some mid-period work from The Cure, Faunts aptly and ably displays their fondness for beautifully lush soundscapes that subtly wash over one’s ears, doing so with an intense level of care.
Nevertheless, it is the group’s seemingly obsessive attention to detail that forces Feel.Love.Thinking.Of. down from its atmospheric heights. Every song is too clean, too sharp, and too damn perfect to capture the listener’s attention, creating more of a “lullabies for adults” feel to the album. My other quibble is that a vast majority of the songs that run much too long for my tastes, as most of them start strongly, but tend to loose quite a bit of steam after the four-minute mark. The result is a record that is quite enjoyable, but it’s so pristine that it could become mere background noise for a hip party or movie soundtrack. As much as I love the title track, “Alarmed/Lights,” and “Explain” for their lovely melodies and the beautiful aural pictures they paint, the rest of the record pales in comparison, faltering in its technical perfection.
Feel.Love.Thinking.Of. releases February 17th, 2009 on Friendly Fire Records.