Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Music news The Constellations' Southern Gothic due out this spring
Posted by Chad Radford @ChadRad on Tue, Jan 12, 2010 at 6:45 PM
The Constellations' debut CD Southern Gothic, which will see an official release via Virgin in June 2010, is now streaming at the band's website.
The band possesses a strong 99x prowess, and under the direction of frontman Elijah Jones, wields tremendous chemistry on stage. There's no denying that. But from the first forced-lazy lines rapped out of the album's opening number "Setback," arrogance and an overly confident swagger infect the CD at every turn. In a word it's poseurville. These songs fill the shoes of a new Sublime, Matchbox 20 or Rob Thomas for the frat brothers who ruin the vibes at the after-hours parties.
You can't make up the kind of false sincerity that underscores a song like "Felicia," and the ATL bastardization of Tom Waits' "Step Right Up" is unforgivable. If anything this revision of "Step Right Up" is an enabling anthem for the weekend warriors who make the places in the song (The Clermont Lounge, The Drunken Unicorn et. al.) so unbearable on the weekends.
There is mainstream radio potential here to be sure, and the album's production features Ben Allen (Gnarls Barkley, Animal Collective) showing off some of his best work. And even though songs like "Step Right Up" and "Felicia" are the most unbearable things on the disc, they are impeccably constructed and catchy as all get out. But despite the strong musical components, the megalomania of it all makes Southern Gothic a difficult pill to swallow.
Download "Setback"
(Photo courtesy Cornerstone Promotion)
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