Okkervil River – The Stand Ins
The boys from Austin, Texas return with the follow up to last year’s The Stage Names with the second part of an originally planned double album in The Stand Ins; this immediately becoming apparent when the two albums are placed next to each other and the artwork merging to form one quite cool complete picture.The Stand Ins, however, is not just a continuation of the previous album, but similarities are obviously evident in material recorded so close together. This is especially noticeable in tracks such as ‘Calling and Not Calling My Ex’ where the almost-country pop vibe that the band developed so well on The Stage Names. With songs such as ‘Just for Kicks or Our Life…’, it is again used to great effect; this being complemented by Will Sheff‘s obvious enjoyment at exploring such a style, one that is certainly somewhat of a departure from that of the earlier approach on Black Sheep Boy.
Despite this continuation the album is not as… err.. poptastic as The Stage Names. Interval tracks (not used in the previous album) build the momentum and create the suspense for Sheff’s high vocals on the following tracks. ‘Lost Coastlines’ is a key example of this, where Sheff opens with the brilliantly metaphoric, “Packed and all eyes turned in/No one to see on the key/No-one waving for me/Just the shoreline receding”. Travis Nelson‘s catchy beats and the banjo chucked in for good measure ensures that the pop is always there.
Nevertheless, the album is slowed down in a different way than that which was achieved in The Stage Names and makes you think that the decision to make the two albums in their own right was a good one. Despite their obvious similarities, these different approaches would have perhaps jarred if they were put together on one record.
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