Tuesday, June 12, 2007

CD of the Day, 6/12/07: Frankel-Lullaby For The Passersby

One of the first EPs we featured on the site was Chatterbox, the debut of Frankel (Michael Orendy). It was an impressive debut, filled with a sound not unlike pop maestros like Jon Brion and Elliott Smith. But the key question for anyone who puts out an excellent EP is whether they can sustain that success when it comes time to put out a full-length. Fortunately Orendy has passed his test with flying colors, and Lullaby For The Passersby is more of the same high-quality pop that the Chatterbox portended.

"Thermostat" is a fine opener, in the vein of Smith's Figure Eight album, and "Tooth Decay" might be something that Brian Wilson would have put out today had he come up in the indie rock scene. Meanwhile, "X Marks The Spot" is a fully orchestrated marvel that indicates Orendy's ambitious approach to the album; "New Authority" is an amiable mid-tempo popper with a great melody; "Red Part of Town" is a jaunty, fun-filled number complete with kazoos (!), and "Curtain Calls" is where Smith meets Brion once again. Don't pass this one by.

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