Cementing The Seams

The Gifted Children, an indie pop act from Rochester, New York, have released two full length records this year (and something like 7 EPs). As a rule, I pretty much stay clear of bands that release more material in a year than I can listen to in the same amount of time. But, Always Stay Sweet is making me rethink that utterly irrational (and admittedly uninformed) stance. In the spectrum of “somber indie pop” (think Neutral Milk Hotel) I regard Always Stay Sweet as, “generally a masterpiece”. Nothing about this record is complex or advanced, it’s all just really good. Many of the songs sound like they belong on the a non-existent AC Newman record that came out between The Slow Wonder and Get Guilty. An opus about an ex (from what I gather), the songs follow a pretty simple verse and chorus structure. The beauty is that on most the tracks it’s usually one of each and on to the next. With the longest song (the title track) clocking in at just under three minutes and over half the songs under two, Always Stay Sweet never has the chance to get boring, but I don’t ever get the sense that it would.

For fans of: New Pornographers, Capstan Shafts, Neutral Milk Hotel

The Gifted Children on Myspace