The Pale Pacific / Urgency

Reviewer: Lloyd Dobler, a.k.a. Chad Woodford

Reviewed: 2005-10-31

Mostly angst-tinged melancholy pop rock with a Death Cab for Cutie sound (male vox, often harmonized). Seattle based (though with a SoCal sound), started in the mid-90s, previously "The Pale." Fairly pedestrian indie-rock sound; some derivative Coldplay production. Plenty of emotional & musical dynamics, frequently tempo changes. Mellow.

Picks: 1, 2, 3, 9. 1 and 2 more representative of the overall sound.

1. * Organ/drums slowly augmented by acoustic & electric guitars, blending into a mellow track reminiscent of Toad the Wet Sprocket in its bittersweet longing. Short.
2. * Another mellow repeating organ intro that builds into subdued anger. It has a dreamy quality, nostalgia bleeding over into anger, as the song gets louder. Radioheadish
3. ** Varied tempo, mostly faster; guitars, driving bass, Cure-esque guitars layered on angsty vox, with some spacey interludes. This is one of the stand-out tracks.
4. A sudden change in style. Ska beat, guitars; vibraphone-backed vox, plenty of the harmonization that marks their sound. More of a SoCal vibe.
5. Slow, longing; organ sparsely layered with harmonized vox. Sort of an Eels/Folk Implosion sound but slightly more accessible (with some “do-do-dos”)
6. Rocking, rollicking piano & guitar piece; hints of Ben Folds. Angst + dreamy breaks.
7. Angry, guitar-driven rock, alternating with the now-signature dreamy interludes; harmonized vox singing shu-bop-bop-bop. Plenty of Matthew Sweet-inspired guitar work here.
8. Cowboy Junkie-esque slide guitar and dragged-out vox leading into 1950s-style lead guitar over longing vox creating a sort of Brian Setzer mellow Cali sound.
9. ** Fun, upbeat electric piano and guitar track with late-90s ironic vox. More Ben Folds influence.
10. Mellow guitar and drums backing longing vox, leading into a fuller flourish of synth and cymbals, creating a sugar-coated analgesic. There’s even whistling.
11. Long, mellow, melancholic CD-ender with stripped-down echoing guitar. A single note repeats behind a strummed guitar. These atmospherics gradually build to quiet drums.