For anyone that has known me for any length of time, this isn't news, but i wish future employers didn't drug test. Getting stoned and listening to an album might be the most amazing thing ever. I might have done this only a few times in my life because i'm too paranoid about piss tests getting in the way of gainful employment. I couldn't tell you how many years it's been...but I digress. There is just nothing like the perception changes when listening to an album in some great audiophile headphones where the stereo separation just gets weird and the bass punches you in the back of your eyes. So when I say an album makes me want to do drugs it genuinely is the highest compliment I can pay it. That means I want to get lost in the sonic landscape it presents.
Troubadour by The Stepkids on Stones Throw Records wins this accolade.
I caught these guys at the House Of Blues Cleveland opening up for Mayer Hawthorne last year and was beyond pleasantly surprised with the opener (The Stepkids.) Their first album was a beautifully crafted psychedelic pop gem with a 60s vibe and killer harmonies that can only be attained with three lead vocalists in a band. Normally at this point the band hones the pop elements into a succinct formula and gives you a more streamlined IV of hooks. Rarely does a band go farther out on the sophomore album and see how far they can push their sound. Kudos to these boys on not playing it safe.
I listened to the album once through and was immediately confused. All the parts were still there, but there were all these new elements that i wasn't sure how they worked. Then it hit me, they are a progressive jazz trio. The hooks are still there but there is all this interesting Jazz guitar work and arrangement buried in what often borders on the edge of seventies porn score and at the same time 90's Daft Punk. All of this is woven into the swash of synthesizers, flutes and trumpets expertly. I could go on but I feel like I would just sound like a gushing fanboy beyond what even I am willing to endure. To me this is hands down the most interesting album I've heard in years. I wish i could get high and feel the instruments all floating around my head but I guess certain things just go along with being an adult. So somebody tell me how it is. I'll live vicariously.
-Nicky P
This is one of the worst songs on the disc...so...high bar...right...