Album Review: Best Coast-Crazy For You

I could have written this entire review without hearing a single note of Crazy For You from my speakers. After the year I’ve spent yapping on and on about how much I like Best Coast, for me not to love this album would have taken events impossible to imagine. The sole reason for this review is simply to convince the few folks who are not interested in this band, for whatever lunatic reason, to grab any of the few remaining copies of this album before it’s gone for good.

Surprisingly, Best Coat’s debut has striking similarities to the XX debut of last year. All the songs have the same vibe to them, and if you are not really listening, then the songs can all sound the same too. Much like the XX record though, the songs, and the album as a whole, work because of the beauty and simplicity of them. Quite easily, this is the most melodic LP I have ever heard. Any of the perfect hooks that came from the singles were just warm up for what is pulled off on this record. The cooing of Bethany’s voice, layered over the bare but elegant fuzzy guitar playing hit pure euphoric levels. It’s everything the singles promised, but by just adding studio time, it manages to mold them into something even more.

Then there are all the contrasts that erupt through out the album. The album is about boys, summer, and good times, but filled with depression and lack of self-confidence. Look no further than the opening track “Boyfriend” about not getting the guy she wants, the lack of content in anything that takes place in “Goodbye” or the dissonance contained in the syrupy “Honey” (which also comes off as a cool half tribute to the Jesus & Mary Chain song of similar name). There also is the fact of how this is billed as a pop album, yet a punkier underbelly can be detected at almost all times. However, the punkier elements are exceptional and add flavor and contrast to Crazy for You. The pure joy contained within “Happy” buzzing guitar line and sugar rush vocals will get you every time, no matter how you prepare yourself. And truth be told it’s these contrasts and how they intertwine with everything else the band has prepared up to this point that makes Crazy For You work. The album could have easily have been just a bunch of tracks thrown together, and that would have been fine, but instead all these tiny elements come to form something that is better than the some of its parts. Pitch perfect melodies, tastefully placed distortion all add up to one fucking great album.

(mp3) Best Coast-Boyfriend

Links:

Best Coast on Myspace
Buy Crazy for You here, from Mexican Summer