Events

[INDIE] It’s early yet to be making statements about the best things that happened in 2018, but Sunflower Bean’s sophomore set, Twentytwo in Blue, is liable to show up on some year-end lists. The New York City-based trio wowed with their 2016 debut, Human Ceremony (and played a well-attended gig at the Tralf in August of that year, opening for – and inadvertently upstaging – Best Coast). But it’s amazing what a few years of life experience can bring. While Human Ceremonywas compiled from material written in their teens (making it all the more impressive, actually), Twentytwo in Blueis so forward moving, it almost sounds like a different band. The scrappiness of Ceremonyis hard to find, save perhaps on the closer, “On No, Bye Bye,”  but fret not – it’s replaced with some seriously refined goodness. Not refined to the point of lacking in emotional sincerity, though. You can definitely sense the passion that went into making this record. The production value has risen — Julia Cumming’s airy soprano benefits greatly from working with co-producers Matthew Molnar and Jacob Portrait, who understand how to help her sound her best. Since its February release, there have been recurrent comparisons to Fleetwood Mac. But flattering as that is – and despite the fact that lead single, “I Was a Fool” follows a similar chord progression to “Dreams” and guitarist Nick Kivlen sounds like he’d learned a thing or two from Lindsey Buckingham— it’s a lazy comparison. Sunflower Bean hasn’t quite moved into the corporate, major-label arena. Cumming will cop to being influenced by Tusk, but really, Twentytwo in Bluehas more in common with something by The Pretenders, perhaps, stepping down from their punky early days into the spirited-but-moody pop that framed their most commercially successful material. “Crisis Fest” is a better example of this: garage-y guitars married with Runaways-like girl group punch, buoyed by a vaguely political sentiment.

The track Twentytwo, a gorgeous vehicle for Cumming’s pipes, provides a telling snapshot of life at 22 (the age of all three Bean members – Cumming, Kivlen and drummer Jacob Faber), mixing a sense of restlessness with independence… whimsical dreams are tempered with the dark loom of reality. That restlessness and the rock-and-a-hard-place feel of being in ones early 20’s is really what informs the album, and Kivlen lends vocals here and there, adding variety and helping shift viewpoints. “Memoria” throws some jangle-pop into the mix, and it seems like they try something different on each track, the twangy neo-psychedelia of “Sinking Sands” and even fuzzier “Human For” being the farthest afield. There’s nothing wrong with trying new things, since 22 can also be an age of experimentation. Thankfully, these three are wise beyond their years and seem to know when to quit while they’re ahead – there isn’t a failed experiment in the bunch. See how it sounds live at Mohawk Place on Sunday, May 6 with London fem-trio Dream Wife and our own psych-quartet, Deadwolf.