Naked On The Wave

Right now the sun is flooding in through my bedroom window and We Are Trees is providing the perfect soundtrack. If you haven’t heard We Are Trees’ latest EP it’s probably because James Nee is a bit of a master of disguise, having done little to push what could become one of the hits of the US summer. Girlfriend, released digitally on March 3 is the follow up to last year’s beautifully delivered Boyfriend EP, and going by the strength of both he’s a star in the making. While derivative comparisons to Department of Eagles and Grizzly Bear are his only stumbling block, Nee deserves credit for forging ahead with his ambition, continuing to do what he knows best, manufacturing some of the finest pop music the world has heard over the past 18 months. His vocals provide a relentless rhythm, somewhat reversing Grizzly Bear’s portrayal of pop art, that is structured more around complex instrumentation and key time changes. Nee’s music sounds more influenced by Phil Spector’s song book, with similar walls of ‘woos’ and ‘wahs’ that were the staple of many Crystals hits throughout the late ’50s/early ’60s.  We Are Trees doesn’t quite achieve the wall of sound, but still creates a big sound using a minimal array of instruments. The acoustic guitar, drum combination creates a grand symphonic sound delivered in a series of booming pop arrangements. Like Boyfriend, it’s hard to find fault with Girlfriend’s five flawless pop songs.

Both Boyfriend and Girlfriend are available for streaming on Bandcamp and can both be purchased digitally from i-tunes. A vinyl pressing of Girlfriend will be made available at a later, still unknown date.

We Are Trees- I Don’t Believe in Love: MP3

 

Posted by Nick Fulton under U.S.A, Virginia
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