Fables

Today's Music That Jason Likes Pretty Well is Fables by Immaculate Machine. This music is very much in line with what you would expect, much like a low-fi New Pornographers with some consistent traits (vocal harmonies and spastic keyboards). And it's pretty good! The vocals are quite strong, thank you Katherine Calder, and though the instrumentation isn't quite as eclectic as a New Pornographers album, it's certainly a plus. The lyrics have a somewhat poetic and irreverent quality, which is both refreshing and suits the musical tone of the album as well.

The middle of the album suffers a little bit - the early songs have lots of energy, but when it falls off, the album doesn't seem to pull the listener in as much. It's kind of a relative thing, though; the first couple of songs are so hectic and lively that anything slower seems almost morose by comparison. In particular, the album opener, "Jarhand" is so frantic that it sets a difficult standard to maintain.

Overall this is a strong album, something I could listen to with a group of people or by myself as I walk around or work out. I'll be curious to see how Immaculate Machine's sound evolves; right now it's difficult not to see them as being the younger sibling (or cousin) to the New Pornographers, which isn't a bad thing by any means.

In Other News:
How can you tell when you are freaking out? Do you know, or do you not realize it until after it's over?