Magic Kids: Memphis
Categories: Nothing Not New
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Title: Memphis
Release date: August 24
Label: True Panther
Paying tribute to Pet Sounds seems to be passé among the new crop of indie bands. Now, it seems a lot of these kids are all about a post-Pet Sounds era, one in which the Baroque elements of Brian Wilson's masterpiece take center stage. So it is with the Memphis band Magic Kids, on their debut record.
And it sure is a sunshine-y, peppy result, a brief blast (28 minutes) of Aquarian pop that initially will put a smile on your face but leave you wishing for just one minor chord to temper the sweet innocence of it all.
These guys sing about girls ("Candy"), superballs ("Superball"), hideouts ("Hideout"), summer ("Summer"), skating rinks ("Skateland"), the radio ("Radio"), and sailing ("Sailing"). There's french horn, strings, a children's chorus, and countless other tricks to beef up the cuteness factor. The songs are well-constructed and catchy, and they bounce along like a baby-oiled Herman's Hermits-meets-The Association-meets-The 5th Dimension twee-pop machine.
Magic Kids - Hey Boy
Note: Magic Kids are scheduled to perform Friday, September 3, at the Trunk Space with the decidedly harder-rocking Titus Andronicus.
Best song: "Candy," the record's only major concession to the current indie-pop aesthetic.
Rotation: Medium
Deja vu: A less-eclectic Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti
I'd rather listen to: The Sunshine Company
Grade: B-
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