Blending misunderstanding with sharp clarity.
Indie pop duo Daisy The Great returns with their latest project, The Rubber Teeth Talk. This album is an in-depth psychoanalysis of the duo’s own mental states, told through a playful, rose-colored lens. With searing-hot guitar riffs and lyrics so specific they’re nearly nonsensical, the listener is transported into worlds built within each track, creating the kaleidoscopic universe that is The Rubber Teeth Talk.
The record is a collaborative effort between founding members Mina Walker and Kelley Dugan, as well as their bandmates Nardo Ochoa and Matti Dunietz. The instrumentals are lush and full of personality, always in tight conversation with the duo’s signature double-lead vocals. The group plays with chromatic lines and unexpected modulations, adding a touch of surrealism to the already whimsical lyrics. On the opening track “Dog,” a bright guitar interlude lightens the weight of an existential identity crisis. Arrangement choices – extra bars, tempo shifts and playful sound design – keep the listener leaning forward. From the punchy bass line on “Swinging” to the complex time signature changes in “Lady Exhausted,” each band member brings a distinct voice that cuts cleanly through the intricate production.
Lyrically, The Rubber Teeth Talk thrives on fantastical metaphors and satirical wit. The bridge of “Ballerina” uses rapid-fire alliteration and a descending chromatic line to create a distorted nursery rhyme: “Pretty people party proudly, posing posting perfect peers / Talking walking how about we talk about our perfect years.” They also flip the meanings of their lyrics between lines, like these pairs from “Rest of My Life” – “I have to lie / I have to lie down with myself tonight / I want a life / I want a lifelong light on all the time.” These intricately crafted lyrics are a great example of the thoughtfulness and attention to detail the duo uses throughout the entire album. What makes the storytelling even more effective is the vocal delivery – the tightly knit harmonies and talk-singing vocal timbre pull the listener further into the dream-state world.
Every decision the band made is in service of the clear visual and sonic concept that they had created. The Rubber Teeth Talk invites the listener into Daisy the Great’s oversized imagination, and is a completely original sonic aesthetic that is difficult to compare to any artist making music right now.
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