Low self-esteem is a popular subject in indie rock, particularly in the lo-fi and DIY arenas. It's a fabulous lyrical motif, providing an endless supply of self-deprecating commentary and ego-hatred with which to pepper the inevitable loner anthems that emerge from this vein of narcissistic self-examination. However, instead of offering up all those feelings of shyness and humiliation for us to wade through on our own, this young Virginian duo has taken it one step further and provided us with a bit of therapy to soothe the pain as well. In the EP's opening and closing tracks, a semi-creepy, oddly soothing self-help recording winds through the guitar melodies, creating a surprisingly ironic and fairly amusing counterbalance for all of the otherwise-painful lyrical self-scrutiny. There is no indication in the liner notes as to whether this little "treatment" treasure was a pre-recorded steal or an invented script orchestrated specifically for the EP, but either way, the joke is pretty funny. The instrumental introduction is laced through with the female voice recording, reciting silly instructions and affirmations in an overly familiar tone of condescending sympathy: "Self-Esteem. Hello. Your purpose for playing this recording is to inspire within you ever greater levels of self-love, appreciation, and acceptance. For it is only when you truly value yourself -- when you really feel worthy -- that you will finally allow yourself to relax and enjoy your journey through life." Yikes.
The closing track, "Don't Close Your Eyes", is an angst-ridden ode to emotional pain which becomes both slightly comical and ironically sad with the addition of the voice-over; lyrics about life being sucked away and endless tears become a whole new ball game when the voice behind them is proclaiming things like: "I surround myself with beauty. I love to have fun. My life is special. Miracles occur in my life." The whole combination is vaguely bizarre, eerily disturbing and almost laughable, all at once.
The five songs that make up the album's centrepiece do not benefit from this same humorous manipulation, but they nonetheless captivate the listener. Constructed on bare skeletons of strummed acoustic chords and vocal harmonies, the melodies are rhythmically appealing and catchy. The lyrics, while occasionally precious or hackneyed, are honest and thoughtful and delivered without pretense or overdramatization, the faltering moments of cuteness often kept in check by subsequent dashes of sarcasm. The wavering intensity of the vocals suggests an early, unrefined version of Kind Of Like Spitting's Ben Barnett. As a surprising departure, the tune and form of the fifth song, "A Change of Scenery", briefly invades bossa nova guitar territory with a deliberate Spanish inflection in the underlying melody.
These guys are really quite young -- one of them is still in high school -- so they have plenty of time ahead of them to hone their style and methods. If they can work some the twisted, clever humour demonstrated here into a more polished version of their sparse lo-fi indie rock, they could be on to something quite intriguing.
