cd review: tune-yards – bird-brains (marriage)
there’s something gloriously new millennial about the way merrill grabus constructed the first tune yards album. according to her myspace page, she recorded everything on a sony digital voice recorder, cutting it all together in the free program audacity. this kind of self-constructed work is nothing new to a music world populated by four-track demos and pro tool/garage band recordings. but somehow knowing just how this rollicking collection was stitched together helps solidify the mindset needed to truly appreciate this singular work. grabus’s songs clatter and shake through a gauzy smokescreen of ambient noise, samples of children on a playground and sparse beats built piece by tinny piece. over this mass of sound, grabus plays her ukulele and using singsong melodies that would make her a natural fit for the kid’s music market. in the right context, songs like “lions” and “little tiger” with their playground choruses, could actually become hits with the younger set. barring that, this is required listening for grown-ups with a penchant for shape-shifting pop that is as challenging as it is engaging.
Tune-Yards
“Sunlight” (mp3)
from “Bird-Brains”
(Marriage Records)
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More On This Album
Bob, this is a tremendously beautiful and exciting album. I had never caught on to the kiddy-music potential there, but you are absolutely on the money.
My favorite part is the car-alarm sound that somehow wrests control of the second half of “Sunlight” from Merrill’s singing.
For me, what makes things kiddy-friendly are the animal-themed songs. On the whole, however, I prefer the tracks that are led by the sparse, bluesy electric guitar lines.