Everything in the realm of music these days seems just completely entrenched in nostalgia of predecessors. I really think I mention it in every single review that I write. I’m at the point now that I don’t care who they sound like, as long as it’s got a fresh feel to what the band is trying to get across. Idle Labor is Craft Spells debut album. I don’t have a lot of back story about this band except that they are from Seattle and they have flowers on the cover of their album. Idle Labor is an album that blends The Cure’s broken hearted lyrics and aching guitar tones with the drum machine pop of bands like New Order and Human League. Despite the fact that they are a combo of two sounds I feel like they structure their songs more like The Cure in the way they incorporate contrasting emotions with music and voice while giving room for some solos and improvisation.
“For The Ages” is a perfect example of this. A song that is obviously about an emotional break up that has left one party devastated. All of this is over really heavy drum kicks, then suddenly a guitar kicks in and the beat picks up and the song sounds poppy and joyous but, the protagonist is still completely miserable. “Scandinavian Crush” has some pretty basic guitar strumming but it’s to be expected because this song is driven by the drum machine and synths. The drums over this album as a whole in fact are incredibly crisp compared to the muddy feel of the DIY recording method Craft Spells used. This song is a nice twist to the dark feel of the opener. “The Fog Rose High” really anchors into that muddy production feel that I mentioned. The lyrics seem buzzy due to some use of reverb. “You Should Close The Door” is another song that uses this sound technique perhaps a bit too heavily. However because the vocals are turned down a notch the music stands our more than normal. This allows you to focus on the drums in this song; which are a nice blend of driving bass drums and tom fills. “Party Talk” definitely crosses into the New Order synth pop territory that Craft Spells boarder. The song is filled with bouncy, optimistic, melodic guitars. The drum machine stays on loop the whole time but never seems to be overdone and in essence never loses its effect on the song. This formula is the same used for “After The Moment” and “Ramona.” The drums hit hard, the organs wail and the heads bob. These songs are really the heart of this album and are the songs that first made me check out the album as a whole. However songs like. “Given The Time”, “Your Tomb” and “Beauty Above All” are all very well written, catchy, pop songs that may not jump off the page immediately but there is some real interesting, relaxing stuff going on here.
This LP manages to blend past with present very well. As stated the influences are as obvious as Mel Gibson’s Anti-Semitism. Yet there something that is almost indescribable that tells you it’s a work done in the 21st century. This album gave me the impression that I was listening to long lost songs that my parents would listen to when I was a kid. That being said I really dug this album almost from the get go. Yet if you aren’t fans of The Cure, New Order or Joy Division you will probably take a few listens to truly quote, unquote, get it. Or maybe you won’t like…the only way to know is to listen.
Craft Spells – After The Moment
Craft Spells – Ramona
