The Criticals Just Made Indie Rock Feel Like Foreplay Again
Written by Natasha Santana
I am starting to believe that there is something magical inside the Cumberland River in Nashville. That their water supply and reservoirs are infused with southern fairy dust that amplifies Nashvillian talent once ingested. Look at all the legends that have revived and birthed scenes within the music industry: Tina Turner, Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, and B.B. King, and the list can go on. With that being said, we can just agree that Nashville, Tennessee - as we say in New York City - got it like that. I fully felt that and said an audible, ‘damn’ when listening to the new album release by two charming guys.
The Criticals.
Yes, if you haven’t quite got the message, they are Nashvillian. You can hear it, taste it, and energetically sense it in the dynamic set list in their new self-titled release. If there is one thing you can hear on this album, it would be the soul of the indie and rock scene. Between lyrics like “No grabbing hair and cock shots don’t seem fair” and “She knows she's Mother Mary's rarest daughter,” there are the riffs of guitars and the gut-punching voice of Parker Forbes that capture the indie yearn we all love.
The Criticals' album release is the love-child of vintage sensibility and electric instrumentation. Each song has its own personality, which is incredibly difficult to accomplish. Even in their reimagined songs ‘Good Looking’ and ‘Treat Ya Better,’ you can hear what they have changed from the older releases and how much they have grown as a duo in their sound. It is close to rare to make such potent songs, and then amplify the personality of each song without ridding it of its soul.
When you listen to this album, you can picture yourself at a house party or underground venue with dimmed lights and smoke everywhere. Your limbs jolt at the eclectic, gritty, and catchy beat of ‘Here Comes My Doll.’ The beginning of the song opens to an addictive pattern of drums and Forbes's voice compressed into this lo-fi sound that pulls you in. The song can make you feel like you are thrashing against the bass as you itch to hear the next line. It’s an addictive song that caught my eye immediately.
Forbes and Shugart balance the darker and lighter sides of the indie sound. With a mixture of soulful and soaring guitar solos, ‘Keep Me High’ lures you in. Forbes’s voice calls in a slow tempo, both sensual and playful, with a steady beat that makes you bob your head. What catches you is the bass that follows each word sung. As you hit a minute into the song, that is where we get to see the Nashvillian soul as it takes a turn into noir grunge. The guitar quite literally throat punches you, and like a climax in a movie, you climax with the song.
It’s exhilarating to finally find an album where your head is whipping left to right. Hard to come by in such a small space like the indie/rock scene. At times, it can get repetitive, though The Criticals’ new album still plays with your attention. After finishing ‘Keep Me High,’ you think you can let your neck and body rest from the catchiness. Alas, you will find yourself in the wrong. ‘Danish Eyes’ traps you into the mind of this person who is crawling, yearning, and begging for the attention of this siren with Danish eyes. By telling the listener, “She knows she's Mother Mary's rarest daughter. She knows that I could be her most loyal bitch” we want to devote ourselves to the religion of erotic obsession as the song details. Especially when Forbes wishes to be a ‘little bit older’ in his head voice.
Truly, it captures that gnawing attraction of someone that you can not have. Even if you want to so badly.
I could sit and tell you that after seeing them at Lollapalooza and Shaky Knees, their new album can be compared to the sounds and aesthetics of The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys, or any punk/grunge band. I won’t, though; The Criticals are in a league of their own. The Criticals have evolved from their EPs ‘ Mimosa Hygiene’ and ‘Habits To Break.’ Before, they had a statement to make, setting themselves within the scene. But in this album, we are finally seeing them take chances on their own talent and nail it. As bad as they wanna nail the ‘Danish Eyes’ muse. Seriously though, The Criticals experimented with soul, raw grit and lyrcism that has truly made them abundantly addicting to listen to.
Take one of your toes, dip it into the album, and trust that my favorites, ‘Adoringly Drunk’ and ‘Good Lookin’, will make you want to hear them live. The Criticals have a specific talent: making music that is meant to be heard live.
Not only is this music you make out to under the influence of many vodka sodas, but it also makes you want to listen in a crowd of people who want to rock out. The Criticals is a duo that you don’t want to be late in discovering.
