A Fun Escape

Chances are that if you’re not living under a rock and have turned on a television within the last six years, then you have heard of The Naked and Famous. This New Zealand based band has had their music featured in everything from commercials to television shows to the movie Pitch Perfect. Despite all of their success, however, The Naked and Famous have only released three albums, even though they have been a band for nearly a decade. One might be asking, why might a band that has found huge success early on in their career only put out a record every three years? Instead of churning out an album every two years or so, they chose to take their time and in doing so, managed to a create a more polished sound.

This new album Simple Forms, is a pop exploration of empowerment and camaraderie all backed by noisy synthesizers and choruses best sung in a car with all the windows rolled down. The first track, “Higher” opens with lead singer’s Alisa Xayalith’s Avril Lavigne-esque vocals before exploding into a noisy chorus, as she sings, “Higher, higher tonight we raise the dead/Tonight we bury this in fire.” Other songs follow in a similar manner, like “The Water Beneath You” a song perfect for any super dancy house party and “Last Forever” where Xayalith harmonizes excellently with guitarist Thom Powers.

What this album lacks in diversity is made up for with its raw entertainment. An album like this is one that is played with best friends on a road trip or at a house party with copious amounts of alcohol. While there is not much differentiation between songs, it can’t be denied that this album is catchy. With Xayalith’s perfect pop sounding vocals and upbeat harmonies, it’s impossible to not feel the giddiness that this band so clearly feels on this record.