Here We Go Magic
Pigeons
Secretly Canadian Much like a certain well known candy you’re probably familiar with, Here We Go Magic’s second full-length, Pigeons, is tough on the outside, sweet in the center, and those not inclined to be patient can one, two, three bite right into the core and the pleasure is all the same.
The Brooklyn-based quintet—Luke Temple (vocals), Michael Bloch (guitar), Kristina Lieberson (keyboards), Peter Hale (drums) and Jennifer Turner (bass guitar)—has maintained the variety of sound present on their favorably received self-titled debut from 2009, but this time around, listeners might strain to find a cohesive musical thread, as the band’s often-ineffable sound takes on many forms. Here We Go Magic have been described as “indie-psychadelic-folk,” but after listening to Pigeons, the label makes sense. We get a little taste of each on the new album—though not necessarily in that order. Pigeons is more like a buffet than a carefully planned five-course meal.
It’s also a more refined record, but not to a fault. The music maintains the gritty live nature of hits like “Fangela,” from their self-titled full-length. The very catchy second track, “Collector,” was released as the first single off the album, and the pace pulses hard and fast as the vocals punch in and out, woven over and under each other like a round. “I’ve got a mild fascination with you,” Temple sings over and over. The song could have easily been the opener and would have lent to a more high-key entry than what is found in the aptly named “Hibernation.”
Temple varies his vocal delivery in “Surprise,” forging into a playful new territory an octave above most of what is heard on the majority of the album. The guitar and keyboard unravel, creating a jam session mid-track that’s eventually wrangled back in before the music slows into the following number, “Bottom Feeder,” where we get another chance to experience the more straight-forward folk nature of the band. Lieberson and Turner’s ethereal vocals float above twangy guitar strums and strolling baseline.
Sharing the similar driving pace of “Collector” is “Moon,” found smack dab in the sweet center of the album. Things start to get more synthy and psychedelic toward this end of the record, with tracks like “Old World United” and “Vegetable or Native.” The exception is “Land of Feeling,” which highlights yet another facet of Temple’s vocal range. It’s obvious he is fleshing out some technique when it comes to both his lyrics and delivery. Somewhere between storyteller and swooning a lover, he’s achieved an ultimate sex appeal which stands apart from the generally lighthearted tracks.
“Herbie I Love You, Now I Know” is the album’s closer, and also shortest track, clocking in at just 2:49. It features the bands telltale metered-yet-random percussion and no vocals, a nice release back into the real world where we first began our journey. Some might say that repeating three words over and over, as is done in “Vegetable or Native,” or saying nothing at all, (“Herbie I Love You…”) is a leap into strange new territory, but HWGM is still a young troupe finding their footing and testing their audiences taste thresholds. It might seem like a stretch, but adventurous listeners will appreciate their moves in all directions on this album.
