Local Natives' Gorilla Manor

Track List:
1. "Wide eyes" - 4:28
2. "Airplanes" - 4:00
3. "Sun Hands" - 4:53
4. "World News" - 4:32
5. "Shape Shifter" - 5:31
6. "Camera Talk" - 3:45
7. "Cards and Quarters" - 4:00
8. "Warning Sign" - 4:12
9. "Who Knows Who Cares" - 3:56
10. "Cubism Dream" - 4:01
11. "Stranger Things" - 5:47
12. "Sticky Thread" - 3:48

The Local Natives have been generating a lot of noise, and I’m not just referring to their debut Gorilla Manor. Most of the buzz was generated by their showing at last year’s SXSW festival in Austin, Texas. At this point, I feel obligated to mention the onslaught of Arcade Fire and Fleet Foxes comparisons these guys have garnered. Fleet Foxes, I get, but the Arcade Fire references are a little more confusing. It might be the raw energy they unleash onstage (just ask YouTube), but aside from that, I don’t really understand the connection. So let’s take the Fleet Foxes, and add a little more soul – something along the lines of Yeasayer’s All Hour Cymbals, a band who also caught our collective attention at SXSW. Perhaps the logic behind Arcade Fire comparisons is similar to my Yeasayer reasoning in the unmistakable flashes of chamber pop that permeate Gorilla Manor in sporadic and delightful moments, or perhaps it’s Local Natives obvious ambition that keeps said reference popping up in all sorts of reviews. Whatever the reasoning, there is certainly cause for the constant comparisons. As good as this album can be, and as impressive as some of the moments therein certainly are, it’s a little difficult to see Gorilla Manor as a whole lot more than a string of moments. If anything, the album might be a little overly ambitious.

But then again, maybe the problem is it’s just not ambitious enough. I was completely on board with this band, their sound and the album until I got to “Cards and Quarters.” The first six tracks seem to slowly evolve from the elusive opener, “Wide Eyes,” into the more obviously afro-pop influenced “World News” and the Fleet Foxes sounding “Shape Shifter” and “Camera Talk.” But then we have “Cards and Quarters” which totally deflates all of the momentum built up in the first half of the album. It’s not that I am anti-slow jam – I’m a big fan of “Who Knows Who Cares.” “Cards and Quarters” isn’t totally out of step with their sound, but it’s certainly the weakest part of it. That track and the closer, “Sticky Thread,” can be done away with altogether. They’re just too obvious, and the best part of this album is the unobvious, as in the scream break in “Sun Hands” and the frantic chorus of the Talking Heads cover, “Warning Sign.” Some reviewers have been accusing the Local Natives of drawing too heavily on influences without accurately defining themselves, but the Talking Heads cover alone proves to me the verity of this band’s sound.

I just think citing a lack of originality is, well, unoriginal – but it’s also lazy. There is plenty of originality to go around through these twelve tracks, the biggest problem is in the arrangement. Had I been a heavier influence in the production (what’s up guys, I thought we were down?), I would have made “Who Knows Who Cares” the closer, eliminated the two aforementioned weak links and called for a more explosive climax in “Camera Talk.” A few of those scream breaks and some of that delectably hectic drumming really would have taken this track from pretty okay to outstanding and done a lot for the overall flow. As Gorilla Manor stands, it just sort of peters out. It’s hard to give “Cubism Dream” and “Stranger Things” due credit after the attention severing “Cards and Quarters.” “Airplanes” with all of its haunting desperation is utterly moving. That track and the following “Sun Hands,” the first single, are likely to be the only tracks you remember.

The cover art alone makes it pretty clear that these guys are going to be hard to define. Heads exploding into splattering colors actually represents their intentions pretty well. My only wish is that they followed through with the evolution of their sound from disquieting chamber pop into the more harmonious Talking Heads inspired afro-pop. You just can’t start pushing the bar if you don’t have a destination in mind. Swing and a miss, but don’t count the Local Natives out just yet.