 "Photo: amazon.com")
When the weather is lousy or you’re generally in a bad disposition, a method of escapism becomes a necessity. Rogue Waves’ fourth album, Permalight, is due to be released March 2, after a three-year gap from the Oakland band’s last album. The album is a good spoonful of sugar to help reality and its daily trials go down smoothly, as well offer good, inspirational music for long rides aboard the CTA.
The album is full of hits and misses, with some songs becoming instant favorites and others that would have been better left in the studio.
Permalight opens with “Solitary Gun,” which despite its name and lyrical content, is a surprisingly upbeat single. The entire album follows this optimistic tone of catchy vocals and hand-clapping giddiness; however, the album does go overboard with the gushy tone. The repetitive hooks and electro-poppy sound overshadows the band’s notorious indie folk-rock charisma. “You Have Boarded” is a single on the album that fits this description perfectly. It starts off well, but the strain for lead singer Zach Rogue to continue the song is apparent.
The band utilizes a repetitive, bouncy hook for the remainder of the song, which loses the listener in an abyss of electric sound effects. Other songs follow the same suit of trailing off without warning, such as “Sleepwalker” and “Stars and Stripes.” Most of what you expect from an indie rock album is going to lack structure, but the sounds of Permalight seem accidental, as if the band forgot to properly finish some songs.
There are singles on here that keep the band’s folksy integrity. The singles “All that Remains” and “Fear Itself” offer up a nostalgia for Rogue Wave before Permalight. The breakaway from the sweet, poppy tone is what places these two in the “better” songs category of the album.
Many of the songs on the album have an uncanny similarity to Postal Service. The song “Good Morning” has a giddy, electro-pop beat that could be mistaken for a more pop- centered indie band.
The songs almost lose their individual originality. The single “Permalight” is clouded in beats and jovial vocals, which makes it harder to listen to — especially following three other exasperatingly poppy songs. The sound is annoying overall. It’s steeped in sweetness and leaves the listener longing for a rain cloud or at least a winding road without the sunshine and daisy fields. But to continuously bash the album’s extremely optimistic tone makes us seem cynical and bitter. We need an album to save us from our self-indulgent id every once in a while. Rogue does just that in their album Permalight, while satisfying the indie pop genre. The album isn’t perfect, but when you’re covered in an inexplicable veil of happiness, perfection isn’t necessary.
The Apple Company will certainly delight in using the happy singles in their new ads and promotions for their next stupendous product. Your finger will be tapping to the beats when you least expect it.
Don’t worry though; it’s not a bizarre case of alien hand syndrome. You’re just secretly enjoying the song.
Be the first to comment on this article!