There is a singer-songwriter feeling found at the core of “Caught Wishing,” the new one from Bicentennial Drug Lord, but then all the best songs often beat with such a heart. But it is the tones and textures that are layered on top of this simple structure that transform it into something much more interesting, make it unmissable.
The guitars are pushed up into the realm of abrasive indie-rock sonics or allowed to jangle and chime out or coil and seduce, as required to serve the songs subtle, and sometimes not so, dynamic changes; the drums and basslines are happy to be unfussy and create a solid structure for the song to run on, which is what they were designed to do. The vocals feel warm, welcoming, and wonderfully world-weary, lived in and seasoned to perfection. There is something Wilco-esque going on here, something reminiscent of their Sky Blue Sky era sound, certainly in the vibe and vibrancy of the music, and that is not a reference point I use lightly.
This love letter to the Milwaulkee music scene that the three core members of the band made their names in is a brilliantly straightforward, though far from simplistic, power-pop/rock tune, wonderfully nostalgic but celebratory so, and there will be few who give this a spin without then making a mental note to at least check out the album that this single calls home, You Are Never Alone, which like this single dropped yesterday.
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