Review Summary: Portugal. the Man visit the Ghost of Hipster's Past.
As the beginning track kicks up it's pace from an eerie and mellow introduction, John Gourley urges the question, "Could it be we got lost in the summer?" through the thick and jingly build up that is "Plastic Soldiers" which one might say is setting the bar high, not only on the album but in Portugal. the Man's discography. Looking back at the album cover, I can feel a darker tone in this from the start. Through that one of the hottest summer like singles shines light through the depressing ending of the last track, "Creep in a T Shirt," providing an engaging hook in a tasteful manner of trumpets and psychedelic ambiance. I'm thinking one thing at the moment, "that was ***ing chill."
It's apparent through listening that Portugal. the Man's experience with Danger Mouse, The Ghost of Hipster's Past as I like to call him, popping up in indie band's dreams now more than ever, has opened up new doors of experimentation, specifically with electronics, song placement, and production filtering. We aren't getting the riffs of Satanic Satanist or the thick and dreamy production of In the Mountain in the Cloud, you're getting yet another change in sound, but that's good to not keep sticking with one thing. Danger Mouse has had much publicity from his recent work with The Black Keys and Broken Bells, both bands of which focus on big singles to accompany the promotion of their albums. Portugal. the Man are taking the route, but they are definitely not abandoning their audience for huge radio singles and 8 songs worth of filler, of course not.
However, with this album I see a larger contrast with quality than with previous albums. The first half of the album is without a doubt more powerful than the second, and I wish it would have been balanced out more, for whenever I get past the track, "Waves," a phenomenal track on the tragedy of war, I get kind of bored with the remaining, except for the lead single, "Purple Yellow Red and Blue" and all of it's ecstasy praise. But songs that have all been mentioned shine high, along with "Atomic Man," so it's like eating your favorite bowl of cereal, it starts out tasting great, but as the milk sets in things start to get all soggy. But yeah, this album is certainly heavy in singles and at the forefront of things. All the songs tie in loosely relating to messages the band have always talked about. Love and not needing your religion, ah my two favorite topics. "We don't need no modern Jesus!" is keeping the anthems from In the Mountain in the Cloud top notch. keep that falsetto working Gourley and I'll be pleased.
