Mae keyboardist Rob Sweitzer has had quite the journey getting his own music off the ground. After leaving the band in 2008, Sweitzer had trouble with the demos he had prepared for a new project. Combined with a state of depression, hope for new music seemed lost. Only when he rejoined Mae in 2010 did the possibility of new music see the light of day once again. This possibility achieved fruition late last year when he launched an Indiegogo campaign for a new project called My God, It’s Full of Stars. With the campaign successfully funded, and a deal for widespread distribution with Spartan Records, we’re finally treated to his debut EP, M29. With hints of Doves and Broken Social Scene scattered throughout the body of work, M29 makes for an interesting listen.
After a lush, layered instrumental opening track entitled “Sangré”, we’re treated to “All Is Not Lost”. The song begins with a driving guitar set to an alternation of 4/4 and 3/4 time signatures. At first, it’s straightforward but captivating. The bridge deals with a bit of distortion that has a nice transition into the final chorus. I’m also somewhat impressed with Sweitzer’s vocal work on this track, which is carried out nicely throughout the rest of the EP. Following track “Saved” begins atonally with some very discordant piano playing but transitions quickly. The drum work is somewhat simplistic but very enjoyable. I’m also enjoying the chord progressions throughout the track. Combined with its layering, it comes across as fairly unique. “Lesner” features some beautiful piano and string arrangements that stand out more in the beginning but are added to as the song progresses. Upon first listens, I found this song to be less accessible than its predecessors, but it’s Sweitzer’s vocals (sometimes layered, sometimes modulated, sometimes both) that drew me back in. “Lightness of Being” follows, and while it more or less served as the EP’s single (prompting some sort of general accessibility for the listener), it hasn’t lost its charm. My favorite element to the track is the juxtaposition of Sweitzer singing an E with the majority of the instruments playing an F. It’s not discordant in the slightest and is personally quite enjoyable. The simplicity of the song ending solely on the piano is also a brilliant added touch. While straightforward enough to be a single, it still stands on its own as a great track. Final track “Interstellar” starts out similarly to “Lesner” and carries out that way for the majority of its duration, it ultimately ends in a more beautiful and more grandiose manner than the aforementioned.
M29 is hard to dissect sometimes. It usually sounds simple enough to examine most of the time, but it’s also somewhat complex in its ability to be heard in a new light with each following listen. It’s a unique body of work that presents little on the surface but a lot underneath. It’s straightforward and conflicted, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The emotions that Rob wrote these tracks off of are highly evident across the entire EP, and if that means that some songs are more listenable than others, then so be it. Ultimately, as a debut EP, M29 is mostly enjoyable. Sure, it could benefit from some more attention-grabbing tracks, and I have no doubt that this will be touched upon with future releases, but it’s enough for me to stick around to see what comes next.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgJukdlnYrc[/youtube]Score: 3.8/5
0 Comments