Sonic Socialism vs. Hamburger Travellin Music

Another post from Steve:

Polyphonic Spree vs. Bob Dylan and the Band

First riffs of Polyphonic: this will be a good matchup…there seem to be some 60’/70’s sensibilities that will make comparison interesting. The gang vocals on Section 11 are right up my alley. I love big anthems and I tend to believe the urgency with which the Sprees sing.


Right away Section 12, “Hold me Now” grabs me. It’s not my favorite style…a little to boppy-poppy for me, but man the chorus with all the vocals are killer. What I like about Tim DeLaughter is that he could easily make his voice overshadow the rest of the vocals, but he doesn’t. Neither does he lose himself in the choir…there is still a very distinct presence of his voice in the mix. It’s like what America should be like, a distinct community built on some specific ideals while not neglecting the role and place and the opportunity to flourish for everyone who is present within that community. It’s like a sonic example of socialism.


The other thing that strikes me about Polyphonic Spree is that they are apologetically sweet, but do not simply rely on convention to express the presence of sugar. Sure, there are some very familiar, even classic melodies that come out from time to time, but it is obvious just how creative this group of people are. They’ve created their own convention…I don’t feel like they are imitating anyone. This is kind of the problem I have with Anathallo lately. You listen to them and you think Sufjan, and while I’ve been known to wear my influences on my sleeve and shouldn’t be so critical, I just don’t think of anyone else when I listen to Polyphonic Spree. I just take them in and benefit from what they are presenting. Plus, the use of saw throughout just floors me.


All in all, I really enjoyed listening to this record. Here’s the thing though…I don’t feel the urge to pop in the Polyphonic Spree very often. I only own one of their records and it isn’t this one. That being said, if ever I do want to listen to something syrupy, this would be a quick go to.


Now, on to the Band and Dylan.


Another record with some fun backing vocals. But the talk/sing of Dylan is not sitting right with me. Plus, the tinny quality of the acoustic guitars is something that I really don’t enjoy…it almost sounds four-tracked.


I love the B3 organ.


Now, while I’m not super into Dylan’s voice here, I really do enjoy the one dude from the Band. Katie’s Been Gone is a great tune objectively speaking. Traveling music is how I’d describe a lot of this. Like I would appreciate it most if I was traveling Highway 61 and eating a lot of hamburger. But here’s the thing, I don’t eat meat anymore. So what am I to do? Well, if I’m a Bible-believing man, I’ll take Paul’s admonition to not judge anyone for what they eat and I’ll keep giving this record a fair shake. In all honesty though, it’s not looking good for this record.
Is this Dylan singing on Going to Acapulco? If so, why doesn’t he sing like this more often?


And then there is Lo and Behold. I know I’m supposed to like this for one reason or another. It’s sarcastic. It’s another good travelin’ song. But I just can’t conjure up much appreciation for it. I kind of like the bass backing vocals…but it’s not enough.


Odds and Ends, on the other hand, just smokes it. Awesome guitar. Killer piano. I’d dance to this at some juke joint on a Friday night…spinning my lady across the floor while giving the crowd a knowing look…yeah, we rule this place.


There’s just too much music here to comment on in detail. The skinny is: I like the stuff where the members of the Band sing lead way better than the stuff where Dylan sings lead. I like so much of the instrumentation for what it is…good ole playing of instruments. Nothing pretentious. Nothing contrived. It’s just good.


And I think that’s why the Polyphonic Spree win. The Band and Dylan are just good…and I know that’s sacrilege in some way, but that’s how I see it. The Polyphonic Spree’s creativity and ability to invoke joy is something worth pushing forward. And so it is.


The Band: 5 gold bunnies
Polyphonic Spree: 18 pounds of fairy dust.