Wild Beasts: Smother (LP)

Kendal, England's Wild Beast's latest release Smother starts with with a pulsing, minimalist synth throb that builds in intensity over the track's 4 minutes with piano, string pads, and drum machine patter that work together to create an arresting, insistent atmosphere. Hayden Thorpe sings in ethereal voice that recalls both John Jacob Nyles' ghost warble and Brian Ferry's out of breath wheeze. But when he takes a breath and digs in, this voice is a sleeping giant waking up. In the quieter moments, repetitive sample noisebeds ala Four Tet slip in and out of the arrangements. Lyrically, Smother is a pastiche of ironic melodrama ("I will lie anywhere with you, any old bed of nails will do") sprinkled with well-timed humor ("Ophelia, I feel ya").

On the downside, Smother is the kind of a appealing but forgettable sonic moodscape that can drift into the background—it's the kind of disc that you can walk away from to use the bathroom without feeling the urge to press pause, and when you come back a new track is playing the same mood, leaving no reason to rewind. But upon careful listening, this disc packs in more interesting sounds and good arrangement ideas than many similar bands are able to stretch into an entire career.
- Will Teague

Chairlift: "Something" (LP)

Brooklyn pop duo Chairlift has produced a fantastic new LP, "Something." Patrick Wimberly and lead singer Caroline Polachek have done something that is difficult these days—they've made an interesting pop record, which stands out amongst legions of similar artists. "I Belong in Your Arms" is the duo's sultriest and most accessible tune, a fitting example of how the less complex can often be just as groundbreaking and engaging as the more so. Polachek's lyrics are both straight ahead and perfectionist, with a simplicity sure to appeal to a broad listener base. I've spent the past four days immersed in "Something," trying to resolve its multi-directional throbs and poke around all of its kitschy corners, and the only thing I can say for certain is that, while listening to it, I feel pulled completely into someone else's orbit, which is perhaps the greatest music sensation there is.
- Will Teague