Do you remember when Warpaint first burst into the public consciousness? I remember watching them on a late-night music show and being blown away by their blend of space and intricacy, dreamy sonics, and infectious groove, as well as those luminous harmonies that floated so brilliantly over the top of it all. Well, as I play “Messed Up,” the opener of Softer’s latest album, Fun Ways to Cope, all those same feelings of having stumbled across something truly refreshing come rushing back.
More so, as I journey further into the album, it becomes apparent that there is a lot more going on here than just what this opener holds, beautiful as it is. Of course that is how its done. One single might echo a certain artist or band, but it is across a whole album that you get to really set out the sonic stall of who you are and what you do, give an overall picture of what makes you unique and explore your signature sound. And that is exactly what Softer proceeds to do.
Recent single “Beachball” pushes further into that balance of grit and grace that we found at the more sublime end of 90s college rock sound, a swirl of seductive sonics being driven on by an almost punk-inspired pace.
“IDK” has all the finesse of early Lush, their days as shimmering indie kids before they reinvented themselves as foot-on-the-monitor, cool-as…, pop-rockers, and “In My Head” is one of those rare times when the much overused word “ethereal” is the perfect tag.
An album of musical highs and lows to match the themes of life’s similar dynamic journey, and both lyrically and sonically viewed through an optimistic prism.
Another much overused word, and I am sure that I am the biggest culprit, but nothing else will do, this album is truly gorgeous.
