This week's review is the second album by Tennis entitled Young & Old.
TENNIS
Young & Old
[Fat Possum]
If you believe the story, Tennis are a band who stumbled, or maybe sailed into the spotlight, surprising even themselves with their sweetly emotional 2011 debut. Alaina Moore and Patrick Riley were just married when they set off on a honeymoon at sea, and Cape Dory was an intimate reflection of the newlyweds' adventures by boat along the Atlantic Eastern Seaboard, a cabin-pop take on classic sounds from the Brill Building to St. Etienne. These tracks were a rather personal diary, not originally intended to be shared with an audience, but now Tennis are an acclaimed young band with a lot of folks listening, and without ocean-faring metaphors to fall back on. With production from the Black Keys' Patrick Carney, and a hook-filled new set of songs that nod to artists like Camera Obscura, the Cardigans and the Concretes, they have navigated the dreaded sophomore slump like seasoned deck hands. Tennis showcase their Phil Spector and Swedish indie pop band influence throughout the album, relying on Moore's pure honeyed vocals and a vintage production style that delivers reverb guitar, tinkling piano, and clattering drum set percussion that sounds more like 1962 than 2012. They have even softened their cover art with timeless sepia wistfulness in place of the pure creepiness they gave us last year. Overall, Tennis have largely stuck to their original formula, and given us another glimpse into their warm personalities and great pop sensibilities, this time less sugar-coated and more philosophical, andYoung & Old finds the band on solid ground.
Have a listen to It All Feels The Same and Robin.
For more of this week's releases check out Other Music update.
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