Not all indy music has to end in “-core”
- May and Marielle
- ¡el toro!'s debut release is a roller-coaster of teen angst and adolescent emotion that plays like a band who is not simply in the "figuring out who we are" phase, but a band who has found their sound and knows where they want to go.
- ¡el toro! on Myspace
- Buy it on Amazon
For those of you who don’t know me, I’m a new guy to this web site. The name is Justin, but you can call me… Justin will do. I guess that will have to do as an introduction, for now. Now, I shall go forth and present to you an album from a band that I can almost guarantee you haven’t heard of, ¡el toro!’s “May and Marielle” on Undecided Records, a sub-label of powerhouse indy label, Victory Records (home of horrible trendi-core acts such as Hawthorne Heights and Atreyu, as well as few decent bands leftover from the label’s former days as a legitimate force in music).
Despite my distaste for Victory’s pursuit of musical trends and the almighty buck, ¡el toro! may be one of the cases used to disprove my disapproval of all things Victory. This CD makes for a great listening experience, which wasn’t a huge surprise for me, seeing that I knew what to expect having worked with them when I ran concerts in Quakertown and Philadelphia. And, though I would strongly endorse seeing the band (with a very different lineup than on this CD) over picking up this CD, it is quickly becoming a presence in my daily rotation at home, in my car, and at work. This album, a concept-album of sorts, tells a story of sexual and emotional exploration and frustration that anyone who has gone through their adolescence (or is still going through it) can relate to
The CD opens with a short acoustic track entitled “Paper Dolls” that is less than impressive, perhaps even the weakest track on the entire album. It does a good job of setting the groundwork for the story line of the CD, but not of grabbing the listener. I am a strong proponent of a good attention-grabbing opening track, which in the case of a powerful pop-rock act like ¡el toro! should be something more representative of them than this track. If the track had a smoother transition into the first full song (and second track), “Georgia Peach”, I may be inclined to approve of it more, but alas it does not.
Don’t take my criticism of the first track to harshly, however, because the CD picks up quite nicely as it goes along. In fact, the CD does have a great flow that contributes to the telling of this story. There is a definite build up, a climax, and a resolution. You feel the emotion of the story without having to even focus in on the content of the lyrics, which is very powerful.
Without forcing the album into the now-dreaded indy category of “emo”, I would have to say that the prevailing force in the CD is it’s emotional quality. The lyrical content revolves about a story that highlights a broad rang of emotion: longing, heartbreak, love, bliss, frustration, confusion, pain, hurt, and perhaps, even clarity. Vocally and musically, the CD does a great job of making the lyrical content very real. Matthew Ludwikowski strains to hit some higher notes in “Bouncing Ball” and the outcome is brilliantly awkward evoking the searching and longing that the storyteller obviously is going through. The poppy “My Sweet Love” illustrates love and bliss with a radio-friendly hand-clapping tune that will make you smile. The trip-hop flavored electronic drums featured in “Beauty and Romance” sets the backdrop for dreamy guitar work and a beautiful song of admiration and infatuation.
The standout track on “May and Marielle” is the climactic anthem that the entire album build up to, “Figure It Out”. Though the album is most certainly one that is very listenable end-to-end, this track really delivers in it’s simple hook, affecting vocal delivery, and sing-along bridge laid well-orchestrated rhythm and guitars that don’t steal from the focus of the song but don’t just dissipate as completely unmemorable.
All in all, this is a great album and even moreso when you note that it’s a debut effort from a young band. The only critique I offer is that they fell into the “let’s add a screaming background vocalist” indy-rock cliche and it feels misplaced. Otherwise, it really is a solid effort that excites me for their sophomore release.
For those of you thinking, “What the hell is he talking about?” here is the short of it:
¡el toro!’s debut release, “May and Marielle”, is a rollercoaster of teen angst and adolescent emotion that plays like a band who is not simply in the “figuring out who we are” phase, but a band who has found their sound and knows where they want to go. While it doesn’t re-invent the wheel, with musical influences from shoegazer to hip-hop, it does stand out among today’s trend influenced music scene. For fans of Coldplay, Sunny Day Real Estate, and Radiohead.
