 The
Atari Star
"Dispelling the Myth of Accurate Maps"
CDEP
Johann's
Face Records
Genres: indie pop, indie rock
Johann's Face
PO Box 479164
Chicago IL 60647
May 12 - 18 2003 |
A
year after the release of the poppy, keyboard-heavy And Other
Smaller, And Brighter Worlds album, The Atari Star have bounced back
onto the scene with a new EP featuring six all new pop
numbers! And - guess what, Yamaha lovers? - the first noticeable characteristic about Dispelling
the Myth of Accurate Maps is that the band's signature keyboards
are kept to quite a minimum. Aiyah! Instead, they take a more
guitar-based approach to the instrumentation, with piano also present
to add a sense of grandeur to the mix.
"Death of the Family Name" is the first song on this
CD. It's a pretty catchy, familiar pop song with a slightly sad
sound. "For a Lifetime of Service" continues this
trend with a lot of chiming guitars and a slight Sparklehorse
resemblance. "And What About Ambition?" then comes on
with a more energetic, yet still downbeat feel; it's an impassioned
instrumental heavy in guitar solos and good drumming.
The second half of the EP continues in the same vein as the
first. The title-track is a depressed, cartographical pop tune,
"Tinfoil + Twine" is an emotional bit of indie rock, and the
closing epic, "Ursine," is a delicate, moody song that
sounds as if it will bring on the apocalypse.
Altogether, this is a very nice EP. Some of The Atari Star's
melodies aren't as catchy as they perhaps should be, but on the
majority they've got a really great sound. Much more sorrowful
than their last album, the Dispelling the Myth of Accurate Maps
EP hints at a whole new direction for the band - and I like where
they're heading.
82%
Matt Shimmer [Vitals:
6 songs, distributed by Mordam, released 2003] |
