Song Review
Cults are a newly-hatched bedroom pop duo with a swift rise to fame and a subversive sound. The pair, Brian Oblivion and Madeline Follin originally hail from San Diego but went to New York to study film. At the tender age of 21 they began creating in-house lo-fi tracks. Neither member had been in a band previously, despite Madeline’s parents having musical connections. In his free time, Brian simply started putting tracks together and attempted to sing, but later realized that his female counterpart was the better vocalist and thus Cults was born. After churning out a few tracks the pair posted songs on MySpace and shortly after posted their track “Go Outside” on their BandCamp site and scored a “Best New Music” award from Pitchfork.
The band’s self-titled album could fit gorgeously (if not predictably) on a playlist between tracks by groups like She & Him and The XX. Despite the fuzzy and sweet musical exterior, lyrically the tracks are sharp and potent and often dismal, a juxtaposition that is not only ironic but also difficult to pull off. In this particular track, “Abducted”, the music hearkens back to upbeat and even “beachy” California sounds complete with xylophones and perky drum phrases. Even the literal melody in Follin’s voice is bright and cheery, the opposite to lyrics such as “He took my heart away and left me to bleed out, bleed out”.
Needless to say, these indie-pop revolutionaries have made it to a prominent place on my iPod.
-
Barry Manilow songs
