Review Summary: It ain’t nothin’ but I wish it was.
Bad Dream Jaguar feels like it
should be a good album and nothing more. Composed of twelve hazy tracks which simultaneously recall a more drugged-out Alvvays, the slowcore-meets-folk of Julien Baker, and the dreamier side of Grouper’s output, it embraces the kind of “catch-all indie” sound which tends to be easily enjoyable but rarely truly satisfies. But, in the final analysis, this is a record which manages to achieve something more in my eyes (and ears). Perhaps it’s simply the well-crafted nature of the tunes - gentle, rich, and melancholic - and brought along lazily by the lethargic vocals of Laura Colwell. Or perhaps it’s as basic as the well-placed lyrical references to Riders on the Storm, John Prine, and the Beatles getting back together (“boomer at heart” alert!). Or, most profoundly, perhaps it’s the fact that
Bad Dream Jaguar’s summoning of a sort of transitory beauty appeals deeply at this time of year - with the last few leaves tumbling from the trees and the necessity to bundle up as I leave the house sinking in, there’s still a sense of joy in awaiting the first real snowfall and the pleasantries of the winter holidays, while also acknowledging that soon such anticipations will be replaced by the grimness of pushing through months of bleak frigidity while desperately hoping for the arrival of spring. Regardless of exactly why Sun June’s latest has scratched this reviewer’s current itch so successfully, it’s a bunch of sad songs which make you feel good to be alive. Can’t go wrong with that.
