“26 without a shot / that’s more than Bonnie and Clyde got”
Never one to shy away from a lengthy title no matter whose blog title section it will disrupt, CFTPA/Owen Ashworth writes songs plenty good enough to overlook this flaw.
It starts with twinkling starlight keys affixed to a broad void of bass drum, just listen to the song. It is all beginning. Synthetic clapping, you should listen for that. And there’s a tremendous organ solo that plays Tom off. You can just listen to it.
There’s a few great tracks on Total Revenge’s S/T, but Jeep Cherokee is my favorite of the set.
Drums that register somewhere between trashcan and streetlight corral a blown out but triumphant melody, bleeding out graciously into the verse. All of this builds pretty quickly to some kind of boil before dissipating in feedback to close out the record.
“I do all the things that I should / For once in my life I feel good”
Check out also The Fair for similar sludgery that reaches comparable heights of wonder.
Beauty Sleep is utterly great dreamy, spectral synth pop. A small triumph of pacing, texture and enveloping synthesizers.
“fell asleep in the garden / the flowers are starting to take root in my brain”
The immensely carefully constructed unfolding is something we can all learn a lesson or two from.
There is a lot to admire in the crafting, the phasing of layers, and the levels and positioning at which field recording elements are place peripherally, never pulling too much focus from the ear-worm chorus and verses.
It is good. Check out other sounds he’s made at the soundcloud.
Plainly & Painfully 