Anagram
The Lights Went Up
Scenery
Reading through all the press quotes for Anagram's debut that name-checked Death Cab For Cutie, I was prepared for their sophomore release, The Lights Went Up, to exhibit the same sugary sad-bastardisms. I'm not sure if there was a strong stylistic shift this time, or if those critics severely missed their mark, but there's not a shade of Ben Gibbard to be found. Instead, a veritable litany of other indie acts like Slowdive, Joy Division and The Cure manifest themselves simultaneously throughout the disc's duration. The resulting sound is serviceable electo-tinged dark pop. The coldly aloof monotone vocal delivery and chunky power chord riffing of Jess Congdon on the opener "Everything I Have" has the blood of Kim Deal running through its veins. "Drove Us Mad" shines like a melding of Jesus and Mary Chain and The Rentals, while the mantra-like refrain on "Right Kind of Love," cloaked as it is beneath fuzzy guitars, a walking bass line and subtle keyboards, is pure Yo La Tengo bliss. The same can be said of the quiet percussive grandeur on "12AX7," a worthy heir to Low's early catalog.
For the most part, Anagram takes all these various appropriations in stride, making them their own, but when the homage overshadows the inspiration --as on "Not Broken," a complete derivation of Interpol-- it can get quite grating. The spoken-word "Invisible Deaths" which tries a little too hard to be a Kim Gordon Sonic Youth song doesn't fare much better. Anagram is well on its way toward becoming a vital indie band, they just need a little more shuffling and dilution of their influences to make that final step.
