Dryvetyme Onlyne

Look Mexico
To Bed To Battle
Suburban Home; 2010

Music critics and fans a like have spent the past several years looking for the next big band, the next big sound, and the next big thing that’s going to “save” rock-n-roll. I have several friends that regularly bemoan the takeover of the indie universe by groups like Animal Collective and Grizzly Bear, much less the ascension of flavors-of-the-month like “chillwave” and “glo-fi.” Their gripes are understandable – sometimes all you want to hear is a classic guitar-bass-and-drums setup banging out three chords and the truth, not some spaced-out jam, complete with electronic aides and annoying vocal manipulation.

To those people, I would like to introduce you to Look Mexico and To Bed To Battle. This Austin-nee-Tallahassee quintet creates the sort of righteous, unpretentious new-school rock music that combines all of the best elements of the indie and math scenes with tight grooves and crisp drums, yet is refreshingly devoid of any art-house wankery. Instead of merely sulking in the lows like an emo sad-sack or perpetually rejoicing in the highs like Bono and Chris Martin, the group knows how to expertly ride the crests and troughs of the waves it’s writing.

More importantly, Matt Agrella pens lyrics that are both clever and emotional – there aren’t any sappy sentiments present, and he’s certainly not writhing about in his own depressed funk. With “Take It Upstairs, Einstein,” he puts a fresh twist on dreaming about finding “The One” when he writes, “Well maybe a good friend is like a great story. You can pick up right where you left off. But tell me where, where is that kind of book – the book you can’t put down?” On “I Live My Life A Quarter Mile At A Time,” he talks plainly about the consequences of bad choices with the line, “You had eight or nine, a few. Getting home was up to you. Instead, got three initials added to your name.” “They Only Take The Backroads” concludes with this rumination on growing up and leaving behind one’s ugly past for something better – “Yes, I will move through the states, taking notes from the graves, then bury them right above the me I’m learning to hate, the one addicted to shame.”

Musically, I was consistently impressed with the zip and energy pulsing through these ten songs, even the slower, alt-country-tinged ones, and it can be duly attributed to the solid composition and part-writing for the tasty guitar riffs. Yes, there are horns, strings, and keys (Rhodes and organ among them) aplenty, but this is definitely a guitar record, as things shift from jangly, dischordant sections into big power chord regions with ease and without breaking up the song flow. With To Bed To Battle, Look Mexico has deftly bridged the gap between the intricacies of a Minus The Bear, the ‘90s indie-emo of groups like Braid and twothirtyeight, and the arena rock volume of a Muse-type act. With “No Wonder I’m Still Awake,” “They Offered Me A Deal (I Said No, Naturally),” and “Just Like Old Times” leading the way, this is an excellent record that finds a young band growing into its own skin – it’s adventurous without ever being outlandishly weird, as the guys know how to pursue the edges of their sound while retaining a firm pop center.