PB&J

So I’d been looking for a new record to check-out over the past few weeks. Anyway, after reading the generally glowing reviews in Filter, CME, and Q Magazine, I grabbed myself a copy of the new Peter, Bjorn and John record⎯ Writer’s Block. For those of you who don’t know the band or their work, they’re veterans at this point. The strangest thing for me about the recent ascendancy of indie labels and underground bands, is realizing the sheer volume of artists that have been around for a dozen years in some niche market or the other. Peter, Bjorn and John are no exception to this trend. Their first release came in 1999, receiving a warm reception from the indie tastemakers.They hail from (you guessed it) Sweden, and follow in the footsteps of their nation’s other international exports… Bjorn Borg (Wimbledon bad-ass), Bjorn Lomborg (environmental economist), and not least, Bjorn Ulvaeus (half of Abba’s songwriting brain-trust). I guess the record is what i’d call “charming”. There are definitely memorable songs. And it grows on me everyday. But overall, it’s traditional indie-pop, recorded with the usual production sensibilities: lollipop melodies set to a bed of jangly guitars and a new-wave synthscape (yes, i just invented that word but it’s ok⎯ i’m reviewing a record). The radio single was “Young Folks”…. perhaps the best example of rock whistling since “Patience”. And there are also a couple other album tracks that would fit nicely on the mix you made for that awkward-hot girl from chemistry class. I think what I like best are the lyrical stylings…. Almost so casual and effortless that they come off less as lyrics and more as ruminations. In fact, come to think of it, the whole record has a feeling of being incidental… which is its best and worst feature at once. Trouble is, I couldn’t help but to wish for something a bit more deliberate or grand in its message. So much music these days is written to be a backdrop to coffee consumption. I guess I’m just a sucker for drama… I like it when the song makes me swoon a bit. But the only records that are willing to go ‘big’ these days are the shit-ass NuMetal morons (Nickelback et al.) Seems like everyone else is writing requiems to rock stardom. Or maybe it’s just that in order to dispatch a bigger message you NEED the luxury of singing it to 15,000 people at a time. And as we all know, the future of music appears to be about bands achieving modest middle-class aims through relentless touring (probably in a van) and ringtone sales. So anyway, I guess I don’t blame PB&J for their boy-next-door approach. Not withstanding the understated approach, Writer’s Block delivers approximately what it promises. Be sure you spend a few minutes with “Up Against the Wall”… the song is 7 minutes long, and yet whenever it ends I wanna hear it again. OK, signing off for now. Please feel free to comment, subscribe, and of course⎯ forward to friends.