4 out of 5

Mice Parade somehow skirted being lumped in with the twee jam bands that started to crop up in the early 00s, despite having the breezy sensibility and fluttery vocals.  Adam Pierce’s project of revolving players and drum fills and guitar strums has slowly evolved from something more electronic-tinged into directly poppier – as HiM, a similar band, progressed from jazz-funk to, like, flamenco funk or something – and they (Doug Scharin as the ringleader in that case) also avoided the indie cool kid association.  Of course, this makes them cooler in my mind because I’ll never not be a jerk, but what gives?  Focusing on Mice Parade, how could the tattooed crowd not be selling out these shows and tweeter posting about it?  …And I think it’s because there’s always been something slightly sinister to MP, some sadness or anger that bubbles up but never burst through the surface; other groups in the genre might have the clever lyrics to tell you what they’re feeling, but those feelings are still primarily on their sleeves.  Which has never really been Pierce’s bag, opting instead for an organic flow that fades in and out of perception and occasionally shocks with a sudden burst of sound, or the realization that you’re overwhelmed with emotion out of the blue.  ‘Bem Vinda-Vontade’ follows suit, which isn’t a bad thing.  It has the ‘warming up’ feeling of a lot of Mice Parade discs – opener Warm Hand in Farmland and mid-album Steady As She Goes feel like they’re coasting on the wash of pitter patter, but the eventual payoffs are always worth.  In the former case, the followup pleasant Nights Wave builds into a frenzy of sound that then leads into a distorted mash on Passing & Galloping, all of this spilling into the epic and intense 8-minute The Days Before Fiction.  In the latter half of the disc, Waterslide follows a similar pattern to Nights Wave, paving the way for the accessible (and intensely toe-tappably enjoyable) Ground As Cold As Common.  Throughout, that mix of vacation-cool with just the hint of dread persists, keeping the listener involved, keeping your ears tuned into to the wonderful layers upon layers that Pierce has patiently lain out for your pleasure.