Teen Dream

Beach House
Teen Dream
9.0 out of 10

Again we come to another band I am late to liking. Pitchfork.com has been touting them ever since their first two cds, however, I just thought they sounded like a garage band Mazzy Star. After seeing them open for Grizzly Bear last year I was intoxicated by their hypnotic sound. They are still using a minimal amount of instrumentation, Victoria Legrand on keyboards and vocals and Alex Scally on guitar and programming. But they are supplementing the fragile nature of their sound with bigger sounding drums in addition to the dime store drum machine they normally use, and a more dense and swirling mix.

There are criticisms of the cd; the songs can seem to blur together and as my esteemed friend Kurt says, they are just boring. Kurt and I differ on several musical fronts, so his criticism is only a subjective quibble, as for the blurring comments, I don't really have a problem when the template is so strong. their music on Teen Dream is so strong and so stellar, I just feel it is more of a song cycle than a series of distinct songs.

There are so many strong songs, it is hard to discuss the cd without mentioning them all, but I will limit it to the songs that have the most meaning to me.

The first song that struck me (and that I thought would be one of favorite songs of the year) was "Walk In The Park" a devastating song about a relationship ending.



With the haunting lyrics:

"In a matter of time it, would slip from my mind
In and out of my life, you would slip from my mind
In a matter of time"

Another great track is "Norway" about a woman in love with a man who only wants her physically.



While the narrator is hurt, she is wiser from the experience:

"Where you thinking that you gotta run to now
With the beating of a tiny heart?
Hang on to the things that you're supposed to say
Millions of stars, they open to your fate"

And probably my favorite track is the stunning "10 Mile Stereo" which starts with a minimal, repetitive guitar refrain and builds into an almost orchestral fury.

"t can't be gone, we're still right here
It took so long, can't say we saw it all
Wings parallel, we stood so long we fell
Bright pyramids at night
they carry us on forever"



Most of the songs, like "10 Mile Stereo" seem to focus on young narrators experiencing first love, which for the most part doesn't end happily but always gives the person a little more maturity to withstand the pains that will only get stronger with age.

Teen Dream is a stunningly confident album by a band that I didn't think had it in them. I can definitely understand why Grizzly Bear chose them to open for them on their last tour. While the songs and music are not similar, they are both bands that have grown immensely with each new release. Both are playing Coachella this year and I will be eagerly seeking both of them out.