3 out of 5

Label: Flameshovel

Producer: Jeremy Lemos

CUCU are one of the few ‘fortunate’ (ahem) bands to sound better when indulging themselves.  Their two full albums (after an earlier EP of which this is a re-issue) give lead-singer Jeremy Bolen full license to let his husky and flat vocals wrap over wandering, oblique lyrics while guitar layers and a steady drum beat are layered on to give the songs a droney groove with a dash, oddly, of dance floor energy.  Flourishes come via some extra instrumental layers or a quiver in the vocal line, but otherwise, the group maintains this forward momentum rather wholeheartedly.  And it works.  Chin Up Chin Up don’t really sound like any other band.  In part its their production preference for a very full, echoey sound, ensuring that Bolen’s unique rasp is consistently forefront, but it’s also the ability they showed to teeter totter between a somewhat unplugged indie sound and the skittery head-bob of the re-surged new wave thing that happened in the mid to late 00s.

So listening to this earlier effort, you get a more separated taste of both those worlds, and can appreciate that the group decided to push in a certain direction instead of developing along more traditional lines.  Our two opening tracks – ‘Collide the Tide’ and ‘Fuck You, Elton John’ – start off in the right direction, the former a bit too repetitive but the latter surprisingly emotive and standing on par with later songs, plus showing the developing penchant for, eh, catchy song titles.  The next three tracks somewhat sink into average territory, blending together and reaching for different aspects of expression via some keys or removing the beat or, on ‘I’m Not Asking For A Tennis Bracelet,’ singing in a more normal register… but that’s just it, the songs feel more normal, and lack dimension.  Final track ‘Pillage the Village’ interestingly hops between the two flavors, ending on a high note that builds to the layered sound that I’m suggesting works better for the group.

The reissue has two remixes and an acoustic version of songs from the ‘Skyscrapers’ album.  They’re harmless.  The remixes prove how easily the later stuff translates to faux wave, but the acoustic track is more worthwhile to show how this isn’t a magic trick – with the production elements pared down, there’s some talented composition going on.

Definitely more rewarding as something to return to when combined with later releases; had the EP been the only testament to CUCU’s music, I’m not sure I would’ve ended up holding on to it.