If you follow the visual art of John Harrison, singer of Chapel Hill's North Elementary, you'll likely notice a motif: a grounded astronaut in a full space suit. Sometimes he's riding on horseback. Sometimes he sits in front of the TV. But in every instance his face is covered, leaving it up to the viewer to decide whether he looks with frustration toward the ground or stares with wonder at the heavens.
Southern Rescue Trails, the band's second LP in as many years, mirrors that conundrum. Striking an intriguing balance between David Bowie's space oddities and the nervy suburban angst of '90s bands like Superchunk and Pavement, North Elementary by turns yearns with awe toward boundless possibilities and bemoans the vexation of not fulfilling that potential.
Piling synthesizers that reverberate like laser beams on top of electric power chords that crackle and crunch like tires on an overpass, North Elementary creates an appropriate sound for this crisis.
Screeching in with a jumble of synthesizers that suggest Kubrick's 2001, opener "That's All for Everyone" starts as a widescreen epic before forceful guitar transforms its chorus into a battle cry. "I know you can feel how everything around us comes through for everyone," Harrison sings, his airy voice darkening into almost angry determination. Processed beats and a dark, sensuous bass line accompany Harrison when he's "deep in confusion" on "Sharp Ghost Mind," but "Southern Elevators" elevates his spirits with a full dose of childlike amazement via breezy banjo and violin.
It all sounds great, but the problem with dreams is that we only really care about the outcome of our own. Because of this, Harrison's more impressionistic lyrics fall flat. But at its best, Southern Rescue Trails smartly realizes that fantasy and failure are inseparable. In the end, Harrison's astronaut feels both. It just depends on what moment he's captured in.
- To create paragraphs in your comment, type <p> at the start of a paragraph and </p> at the end of each paragraph.
- To create bold text, type <b>bolded text</b> (please note the closing tag, </b>).
- To create italicized text, type <i>italicized text</i> (please note the closing tag, </i>).
- Proper web addresses will automatically become links.
Latest in Record Review
-
Various artists' Waste of Time: A Tribute to Paint Fumes
Friday & Saturday at Slim's
- May 15, 2013
-
Bevel Summers' The Cards
The Carrboro band's first full-length, a magpie collection featuring more voices, new instruments and a wider palette of influences, is united by a keen sense of songcraft.
- May 8, 2013
-
LiLa's IV
LiLa's IV has some soul packed in the places you'd least expect.
- Apr 24, 2013
- More »
More by Jordan Lawrence
-
Interview: Lost in the Trees' Ari Picker discusses the band's new, non-orchestral lineup
We caught up with Picker to gain some insight into his outfit's creative shift before they head to the studio.
- May 15, 2013
-
DiggUp Tapes issues its music on cassette, and that's no joke
DiggUp Tapes feels less like the future of music than the now of it, a young company that has found somewhat novel ways to fund its low-margin mission.
- Mar 27, 2013
- More »
