Review Summary: While I hope their next album doesn't end up talking about packing lunches, buying school supplies, or buying a minivan, I do hope they maintain their knack for creating nice, simple, and infectiously catchy pop perfection. Which, after all, is what they'
Married Connecticut-via-California-via-Kansas indie pop duo Mates of State have been around since the early 2000s, quietly clinging to cool kids' mix cds and iPods over the years.
My Solo Project, their debut, showed a great potential, with its hypnotizing and interesting mix of drums and electric organ. Then
Our Constant Concern showed them paring down the intensity, but still making a very effective record. And then came
Team Boo, which remains a favorite with one of the fans' favorite Mates songs, "Ha-Ha". Then came their breakthrough album,
Bring it Back," featuring a much thicker sound with longer and more complex songs, and truly advancing the greatness of their work. Each album slightly different, each marking the growth of a very talented band.
The duo's latest effort,
Re-Arrange Us, isn't exactly the growth everyone was expecting. While still charming, it leaves their signature organ buzzes off of nearly every track, one of the more notable exceptions being the delightful "You Are Free." But even then, it's nowhere near the dominate instrument. This comes as a shock to most listeners, as the Mates have never been one to use organic piano as their main weapon.
All that aside,
Re-Arrange is a surprisingly good album, complete with cards that lets you literally re-arrange them, giving you the option to switch the cover art. And even though the duo incorporate more domestic traits (this is often a record slightly or largely inspired by the aspects of marriage or parenthood), tames the drums a bit, and adds some beautiful strings to the mix, these are still the same old Mates we've always loved.
Opener "Get Better" is a cheery almost sardonic comment on politics ("Forget all your politics for a while / Let the color schemes arrive.") It ends up turning into a near powerhouse of a song when they belt "Everything's gonna get lighter! / Even if it never gets better! / Ohh!" Live in concert, this was one of the highlights, because the entire audience built the soaring chorus into a magically dense anthem.
"Now", "Jigsaw", and "Help Help" are among the most catchiest, the latter utilizing some awesome effects and sudden shifts or breakdowns. Every song on this record is catchy, actually. "Now"'s chorus refrain (which is just the word "now" twenty-one times) will make a cozy home in your head for days. And it's completely welcome to stay as long as it wants.
Another perhaps surprising aspect is how domestic some of the songs can get, as I stated earlier. "My Only Offer"'s first line is "Bought a house we bartered right / Two kids, two car delight," later going on to talk about the two of them (presumably) first met. And the beautiful closer "Lullaby Haze" (which is one of the more interesting songs on the album, showing off the true extent of Gardener's piano playing) has the motherly mutter "You know it’s just getting closer, without a date and no name / And when you get up in the morning, it’s maternal all the same." They are married, after all, and have two daughters, so you have to forgive them. It's just more blatant now than ever, so it takes a little adjusting.
Nothing compares to the near-title-track "The Re-Arranger." Another one of the more complex songs, it all builds up to a fantastically belted repetition of the album's title. This is easily a clear hark back to
Bring it Back's impressive heights, but it still feels right being here.
"Great Dane" is a slight misstep, not impressing much and kind of aimless. The cute "T-t-tonight" chorus is catchy, and the song is sunny enough to not skip by it, but it just doesn't seem to hold up to the greatness of the other songs. Also, I feel like, even though it'd only be about a 32 minute record, it should have been excluded.
While I hope their next album doesn't end up talking about packing lunches, buying school supplies, or purchasing a 5-star-safety-rating minivan, I do hope they maintain their knack for creating nice, simple, and infectiously catchy pop perfection. Which, after all, is what they've been known for since the beginning.
INDIVIDUAL TRACK RATINGS:
1. Get Better - 5/5 *
2. Now - 4.5/5
3. My Only Offer - 4/5
4. The Re-Arranger - 5/5 *
5. Jigsaw - 4/5
6. Blue and Gold Print - 4.5/5
7. Help Help - 4.5/5 *
8. You Are Free - 4/5
9. Great Dane - 3.5/5
10. Lullaby Haze - 4.5/5
* = Track Pick
