This album starts out with “Burn It”, and right off the bat this is a really solid sound. I love the strong groove, as well as that slight Glam Rock, feel that we heard on their first album. Vocalist Julia Cumming’s performance as well is just so fiery and intense, between her and Nick Kivlen I’ve always felt she sticks out a bit more. This is just a really great, funky opener. But one thing I do have to point out, which isn’t really a bad thing, but it’s something to note. In between the fiery bars as well as some of the Glam and Indie Rock riffs, Sunflower Bean is focusing much more on crafting a Pop tune. To be honest, though, it gives them so much more of a focused sound, which I totally dig. On the other hand, “I Was a Fool” reminds us just how versatile Sunflower Bear are. This is much more of an “Indie” direction, but it’s got a breezy atmosphere and just enough of a Psych Rock feel. Julia’s vocals are so much breezier and not nearly as impassioned, but the result is honestly one of her most charming performances I’ve ever heard. Even Nick’s backing vocals here are just the right amount of weirdness this track needs. For a few short minutes, I remember what really captured me about Sunflower Bean, to begin with, but this is still a damn fine Pop tune. Up next is “Twentytwo”, and you really have to hand it to Julia, her vocals have seriously gotten incredibly lavish. I mean, ever since I first heard her a few years ago it was obvious that she had a voice. But it’s just gotten gigantic since then. Not only that, but I love just how confident she’s become. “Twentywo” almost has a little Vintage Pop thrown in, if that’s something you're into you’re going to want to hear this. Not to mention, I feel like this one has such an elegance to it. Almost a little too much elegance for my liking to be honest. I always though Sunflower Bean’s constant clashing of styles was exciting, plus they always had sort of a Punk attitude. That’s far from what I’m getting here, but this is still a very pleasant Pop tune. On the other hand, “Crisis Feet” brings back in that very attitude that I loved from Sunflower Bean in the past. This one has some serious fire to it, even if we’re not dealing with necessarily the heaviest material. It’s catchy, determined, and really well written. I have to say, Sunflower Bean sound incredibly focused. You can argue that in the past that the band were trying out a slew of different sounds. But with this album, so far it’s been pretty clear that Sunflower Bean has their sound narrowed down. “Crisis Feet” is a seriously anthemic and impassioned tune, and I love it.
On the other hand, “Memoria” is much more dreamy, opposed to their usual very cleanly polished Indie Rock. But, it’s moments like this that continue to not sell me. This doesn’t sound like Sunflower Bean have their own sound, this sounds like a cover. I wouldn’t say there’s anything wrong with this as a whole, because the vocals are absolutely charming, and it’s pretty well written too. But almost nothing about this track really tells me who Sunflower Bean is. On the other hand, I actually seriously love the much more punchy, intense performances on this one. Ironically, this a little more of a heavier track instrumentally then we’ve heard here, but it may just be their catchiest and most accessible tune here. I really love this track, compared to their more dreamy and elegant tunes, this is so intense. I love just how hypnotic the chorus is too, and just how grimy this is at the end of the day. Sure, it’s presented all flashy, but there is this thick blues vibe here that’s just so likable. Is this super straightforward compared to other tracks here? Sort of, but sometimes that’s all you need. But these dreamier tracks like “Only A Moment” are just not cutting it for me at all. They can pull off a ton of genres as it’s been obvious in the past. But this dreamy, breathy singing here is just not doing anything for anyone. And even this instrumental is just is just so uneventful compared to what we’ve got on the rest of this album. At this point, I would honestly welcome some flashy Indie Pop instrumental, because this is just boring. And while the repetition in the last track really made it sort of intense, this one is just underwritten. But then we have “Human For”, and would you look at that, Sunflower Bean still have plenty of energy left. This one is just so crunchy and seriously one of the wildest tunes here. This is easily the most anthemic and rebellious track here. All of that Punk feel on their previous album is right here, wrapped up in this one tune ready to attack. I love the intensity of this instrumental, I have no idea where this has all been, but I’ll take it all and more, please.
Now, “Any Way You Like It” is an interesting turn because for the first time this album we’re actually getting a LOT of Nick Kivlen on vocals, which is nice. But I just can’t shake the feeling that this track is a little underwhelming again. I feel like every time Sunflower Bean give us a really intense, upbeat tune that I can really get into, they come back after that with a tune that’s way too dreamy for its own good. However, I do give credit where it’s due, and as this one rolls on it becomes this incredibly charming vintage sounding Pop tune, which is a sound they can really pull off. It’s sweet and charming, and there’s actually a lot of really cute back and forth bars between Nick and Julia here. This is pleasant, but Sunflower Bean really have to watch tracks like this. Then we have “Sinking Sands” which literally sounds like an early 70’s cover. Which, I wouldn’t say is a bad thing. But why do I get the feeling that they’re not giving this track nearly as much as they could have. The chorus is charming and sweet and all. Nick’s vocals on the verse are seriously goofy, almost to the point that I feel like he’s not taking this entirely serious. It’s weird, but it’s just sort of an alright track. But there certainly is a lot to like about this one, and you have to respect Julia for really stepping out into her own on this album. On the other hand, I have no idea where the energy of “Oh No, Bye Bye” has been this entire album. I actually really like the sort of dreary, Low-Fi, almost Post Punk inspired sound here. It’s just so gloomy and drawn out but to be honest it really stands out so much. Not to mention, it gives us some of Julia and Nick’s best duet vocals of the entire album. This honestly sounds like a track they would have gives us on their debut, and I love everything about it.
Rating: 7.8/10
Give a Listen To: “Burn It”, “I Was A Fool”, “Crisis Feet”, “Puppet Stings”
Genre: Indie Rock / Indie Pop / Psychedelic Rock
Overall Thoughts: Sunflower Bean on this album sound so much more focused, and clearly are much more in tune with their sound these days. It's interesting, their debut was a revolving door of Indie sounds that all seemed to compliment them. But this time around Sunflower Bean is much more interested in making a straight-up Pop album. Don't worry, it's on the classy side of things. There's a lot of Vintage Pop flair and a lot of dreamy ballads, and most of the time this really works out for Sunflower Bean. Some of the dreamier tracks get a little too hazy and end up coming off way too much like covers, but still, Sunflower Bean has a great sound and I can't wait to see where they go from here.
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