A collection of demos which sort of provides a new perspective on their own Whispers in the Speech Machine, the new album from The Laughing Chimes is, obviously, a highlight of this week. Fans of this band will be both delighted and surprised by what's in the grooves of Behind Your Blue Fields is what this reviewer is really trying to say.
While this band has favored a goth-flavored approach on some recordings, Behind Your Blue Fields reveals just how much this outfit has been inspired by the very sort of bands that inspired the formation of the Slumberland imprint so many decades ago. "Trapeze Baby" is a little C86-y, while "Pharmacies" feels like stuff from American indie pioneers like Small Factory and their peers. The title cut, a real winner, is a little Close Lobsers mixed with early R.E.M. and it's a glorious piece of work. Athens, Ohio upstarts taking cues from the legendary four-piece from the other Athens down in Georgia. Elsewhere, "Seasons (Melt Your Face)" adds a little shoegaze to the vibes here, whiffs of early Swirlies and Veronica Lake singles on this very same label creeping in.
While billed as a demo collection, the robust indie of Behind Your Blue Fields is hardly stuff you'd want to skip. This whole Laughing Chimes set feels like a cousin to that superb Strum & Thrum: The American Jangle Underground 1983-1987 compilation from a few years ago. The Laughing Chimes make tunes that feel like lost gems from that era, while they keep this stuff lively and forward-looking. And it might sound funny to say this about a collection of songs that didn't make the final cut, but these demos are further proof that The Laughing Chimes are one of the very best American indie acts of this era, refining an absolutely essential jangle-pop attack with each bit of new music they issue.
Behind Your Blue Fields by The Laughing Chimes is out this week via Slumberland Records.