This second installment of their sonic tryptic, a series of EPs through which the band explores “the tension between personal reckoning and communal catharsis,” sees the Eau Claire, now Chicago-based three-piece doing what they have always done so well. And that is to navigate through the fringes of the pop, rock, and indie worlds, and other genres besides to find their signature sound.
And four songs give you everything you need to understand and appreciate the band and their approach to music-making. “Peabo” is the opening salvo, pop vibes delivered through rock instrumentation, a staccato, spacious groove that struts along under its own steam, growing in stature, growling with tension, gracefully reflective, a quirky kick off for The Concession.
“Charlie’s Theme” is darker, with less extreme dynamics, not gothic as such, but able to find the dark corners of indie music, the call and response vocals forming a brilliant sonic dialogue between, perhaps the logical brain and the more primative understandings. “Twenty Dollars in a Card Means That Someone Cares For You” needs talking about, not only because it gets me to my word count much faster than expected but because it is a great song, powerful, robust, punchy, driven by a cool and crunchy bass line and guitars that shift from the chiming to the abrasive. It’s a song made from wonderful musical textures, creatively contrasting yet always complementing each other.
The EP signs off with“Crooked From the Start” again, darker, slightly melancholic, a serene soundscape punctuated with occasional cascades of raw guitars, honest, inward-looking, personal, and vulnerable.
Having set out to explore the battle between personal needs and the greater good, redemption, and relationships, I would say that they have ticked a lot of boxes. This might be pop music, essentially, but it is pop music that is cool, creative, and clever—very clever indeed.
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