Aníbal – The Chase
For the most part, the great songwriters of the rock world write convincingly about one of two things – about living in the city and about living outside of the city. Sure, some of them will try to switch occasionally. But people want Springsteen to deliver tales about New Jersey, not about being brokenhearted while hiking through the woods. Pictures of him with a beard couldn’t have worked past the 1970s.
Sure, there are fewer writing tunes about the great outdoors. There are even fewer writing these songs and adding intelligent lyrics that contain life advice. Most of these bands stick to instrumentals, or like Sigur Ros to invented languages. But that doesn’t mean that they are not treasured by their own community of fans. These listeners are looking for sounds that make them feel as if there’s no roof above their heads and nobody breathing down their necks.
Aníbal’s “The Chase” is a love song written in and about the wilderness. In it, the object of the songwriter’s affection is as elusive as the perfect sunrise or a storm raising tall waves. And while this is music about being away from the big city, it’s not music of loneliness. Aníbal’s vocals are sweet, they have a poppy quality to them and they call out for someone to join them on this quest, however long it may turn out to be.
Rabbit Season – No Attention
A few people are born with excellent taste, and everyone else just acquires it from teachers, magazines, and television programs that bully people into getting smart. What was your favorite song before you were told that The Velvet Underground and Television were cool? Was the Sex Pistols record really the very first thing you spent pocket money on?
I flatter myself into believing I am the exception. But, of course, I, too, loved silly songs before I was told they were silly. Once I figured “Sunshine Reggae” was sung by a bunch of German kids, presumably praying for a drop of sunshine on the beaches of Hamburg, I doubted myself for a moment. But don’t let shame ruin your enjoyment. Music is just sound and if it hits the ear right, it’s done its job.
Rabbit Season may have more in common with Laid Back than with The Velvet Underground. But what this may add up to is that “No Attention” may well turn out to be a piece of music enjoyed by more people. They certainly have a sweet, mellow groove going. There’s a hazy, psychedelic hue to it all. And, if the artwork reveals any truth, it was made in the proximity, or, at least, while thinking of a beach. It’s not as blissful as “Sunshine Reggae,” but has a similar beat and is nearly as easy to lose in this.
