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Music has a particular way of getting into every nerve ending and fiber of our bodies, doesn't it? If you are a fan of music in general, and can find the beauty and poetry in harmony and chords, then there are certain albums from time to time that really twang those nerve endings. They tend to float your brain pieces away as if on a ghost barge in a really hip ocean. Such is the case with the eponymous debut LP from Wildlife Control.
Wildlife Control is an album that feels how it was recorded. Recorded between sessions in San Francisco and Brooklyn, brothers Neil and Sumul Shah wanted to be sure they included every baritone saxophone, harmonium, tabla, and viola, piano, and guitar no matter where they were located. Collaborators from both coasts added to the sound, a sound that is certainly definitive and unique, yet carries qualities of sound from California and New York.
There is a particular hipness to the album that I find hard to explain. From the first track "Brooklyn" through the end of the last song "People Change" there is this fuzzy, bouncing line that carries each track through the next, never leaving the front of your consciousness. There is synth pop with a jazz undertone blanketed by a tiny bit of hook laden pop rock which is quickly subdued by say, a piano solo such as on the track "Disguise."
Yet, the shifting genres seem to meld in cosmic confluence, taking the listener on a 40-minute walk through the park. You can tell, when considering all the tracks and the relationship with their music that the brothers appear to have, that they left no creative avenue unconsidered – they may not have used every one of those creative thoughts, but they considered them. What you are left with is both a complex and minimalist collection of songs that will pique your sense of hearing.
While their 8-bit video for "Analog or Digital" brought Wildlife Control a bit of notoriety and notice from major labels, they were ultimately left to record and master their debut album on their own. This is a perfect example of major labels missing the mark and sticking to artists they can easily exploit. Good on Wildlife Control for getting this done without a major label and remaining independent.
For me, when reviewing music and discovering independent artists, I need to get hooked really quickly. With the early release of "Analog or Digital" Wildlife Control pretty much already had the hook in, and "Brooklyn" grabbed me right away. Starting off the album with energy and a catchy track with horns and a story about the movement of life certainly made a quick, and good, impression.
There's a seamless transition here, with voices in the background sounding like an airport arrival melding into the toned down intro to "Darkness." This song quickly was my favorite on the album, as it really light-switches your expectations of emotional progression. With a drifting outro, you are paced into "Analog or Digital," a track soaked in musical technology.
The open of "Disguise" carries some of that synth pop technology with a deep electronic bass line that gives way to very pronounced piano and vocals. The vocals throughout most of the album are very distinct, covering the range of pop and feeling like the corner of a dark club in Brooklyn. This is a positive, as they sound just as relaxed as the rest of the album.
The next two tracks combined to lose my interest then bring it right back. "Oakland" is the waves crashing over the seawall, but not during a storm. It is calm and drifting, an instrumental track that seems like one long intro. Which, as I started to wonder where the hook was, led into "Melody." So, effectively, it was one long intro track. "Melody" has that wondering-on-the-beach feel to it, with a dream-like string arrangement and acoustic guitar. While I don't usually go in for slow tracks, it simply felt like part of the journey.
From there, the album perks right back up with "Lose," a song about losing to love (you always will). "Tangerine" mixes in some Ben Folds-type piano in the middle, while "Spin" and "People Change" close out the album with a jazz club visit and a definite pop rock sound, respectively. Both tracks add in a good portion of heavy electric guitar, foregoing simple pop riffs. After that, you have it on repeat and you do it all again.
I was a little disappointed that "Ohai (Do I know You)," the "Analog or Digital" B-side, didn't make the album. At only 40 minutes with one instrumental track, the album does feel a little short when the talent of Wildlife Control is considered. There could be two or three more songs on here without sacrificing any of the flow. In a sense, though, there is a completeness to the album that might be broken with the addition of B-sides.
WIRED A great debut album from an indie band who really seem to be creating their own musical pulse to which they have a finger on.
TIRED This album is entirely too short for a band with this talent. Also may cause wistful daydreams.
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You can pick up the debut LP from Wildlife Control, Wildlife Control, via their website or over on Amazon.com.
