Modern Youth in Sound and Sentence
Music is a time machine. Some songs perfectly capture eras, while others exist in voids removed from time, some are deeply personal and others are ubiquitous. Everyone has a song that can pull them back to a single moment in life, a struggle, an achievement or maybe only the moment that something finally clicked. On Feeling, the latest EP from Lost Girls, the plight of modern youth is captured eloquently in both sound and lyric, leading to an experience that is both beautiful and ugly, while always being unnerving.
The first thing most listeners will notice is how little this album deviates from the script in terms of spoken word. It’s almost strange how much the first track “Drive” fits within the mold, especially considering that the other track on the project, “Accept,” contains no lyrics whatsoever. While the instruments may only occasionally excite on “Drive,” the lyrics never disappoint. The lyrics are read as a letter to “Dear So and So,” rather than being delivered as standard lyrics. Poignant moments pop out in the mix. Lyrics like “I’m always lighter, smaller, less… hairy, more delicate. A sexless body, a sex, just a little less body,” fly out at the listener, forcing them to evaluate their own mental image of themselves.
Perhaps the most meaningful moment of the album, particularly for the youth of today will be when Berry proclaims, “Nothing is really mine here, the car and equipment, it’s all rented. I keep buying coffee, water and weird sweaters, just to own something. Just to own something.” Forcing listeners to come face to face with the brutal ramifications of today’s rental economy. Instrumentally, the song is comprised of little more than a looping tribal drum and a synth drone that constantly grows in intensity. There is, however, one shocking moment toward the end of the track when the lyrics fade into a chant and a startling piano begins playing in the background. It is not harsh, it is only sudden, and somehow deeply unnerving. “Accept” lacks lyrics, but is much more ambitious in its instrumentation. It flirts with elements of noise and post-rock simultaneously, but in general is content to let itself languish through long swaths of the track. Guitars rise and fall while organic elements, reminiscent of those on Duane Pitre’s Bayou Electric or even parts of Merriweather Post Pavilion. It is repetitive and lush, to the point of being like a meditation, and while no moments jump out in the same way as “Drive,” it is a welcome addition to the EP that rounds it out nicely.
Spoken word tracks are often difficult to take at face value. In most cases, they are indecision pressed into wax. Most spoken word tracks should either be sung or placed within pages of poetry. Yet occasionally one finds a track that instrumentally justifies its own existence. Lost Girls manages to spin a worthy narrative, and bookend itself with a wild and emotionally moving track. It’s a short EP that is well worth a listen to anyone willing to dive into the deep end.
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