Album Review: GIVERS - New Kingdom
By Nick Dighero, Contributor
[Glassnote; 2015]
Rating: 3.5/5
Key Tracks: “Record High," Record Low,” “Growls"
GIVERS are an indie rock/pop band from Lafayette, Louisiana. Their absolutely wonderful 2011 record In Light was full of catchy, poppy refrains, free and wild sounding guitars, worldly percussion that made the listener want to dance and bass guitar that would erase the common misconception of “bass being boring” from anyone’s mind. New Kingdom, their latest effort, has hints of these great characteristics, but is overall a very different listening experience.
New Kingdom is full of tracks with a heavier techno sound, tamer vocals and a lot less guitar. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing because Givers are still making songs with very catchy hooks and offbeat rhythms that keep the listener interested. However, the vocal melodies and instrumentation sometimes sound too similar from track to track. Because of this, listening to this record becomes a drag starting at around the middle all the way to the end.
Some songs will start off very strong, but lose their strength shortly after the intro and fall into a dull, soft sounding verse. For example, the song “Layback” begins with a strong New Orleans jazz sound with beautiful trumpets and bass, but as soon as the vocals come in it is toned down too far to only a couple of instruments.
Some tracks on New Kingdom, though, are tasty the whole way through. “Record High, Record Low” has a constant drum beat that keeps getting more intense as the song progresses, group vocals in the refrain that are mixed perfectly and a violin that comes in from time to time that is extremely pleasing to the ear.
“Growls” has a very interesting drum noise with a cool echo effect that never tires and a groovy synth lead. It then works its way into an epic sounding phrase with long violin and vocal notes in the pentatonic scale, giving it a big, monumental sound. “Blinking” is the song that sounds closest to Givers' first record. They bring back the wild, free guitars and worldly drums of their past work, which makes for a song that is magical the whole way through.
Overall, New Kingdom has its dry, dull moments, but the groovy beats and attitude keep this record a joy to listen to.
