When we last left Chairlift, Caroline Polacheck and Patrick Wimberly, they were somewhat exhausted. The cutesy nature of their indie-pop hit “Bruises” had garnered them brief notoriety for writing adorable songs that are easy on the ears. Much of their attention had come from the use of “Bruises” in an iPod commercial, putting off some fans while bringing in new fans with short attention spans. “Something” is another shot at displaying their songwriting talents, now with a little more production muscle and an even more obvious nods to the 80′s, and it’s a complete success.
From the beginning, “Something” suggests a nonchalant adventure, perhaps setting out to explore a city. “Sidewalk Safari” might recall a simple metropolitan excursion between friends with an uncertain destination, before the chorus lyrics reveal a more sinister storyline: “I’m gonna run you down.” The track actually begins with what sounds like tuning of instruments, almost like stretching before exerting physical movement. Just as the song is building, the vocals come in, backed by an addictive beat that breaks into a a whiny guitar riff. When those vocals intertwine with a soaring synth line for the chorus, it’s really quite something. The track shows how Chairlift have grown since their last album and it only gets better.
“I Belong In Your Arms” is the obvious crown-jewel single of the album, which is saying something since the whole of the album is a dance-fest. The beat is simple enough to allow the lyrics to carry the song. The chorus reminds me of a typical Best Coast-hook since Polacheck’s voice is slightly distorted to sound lo-fi but the distortion doesn’t drown-out the message or tone of the vocals. “Amanaemonesia”, the first single from “Something”, shows Chairlift’s most acrobatic vocal performance. The track uses many effects but not excessively, just enough to allude to how energetic they are as a band.
I’m also taken by how upfront Polacheck is in songs like “Met Before” and “Guilty As Charged.” She isn’t hiding behind slick production or overextending herself over the music, which both frequently happen in this genre of music. Polacheck’s growth as a singer is obvious. Also, she morphs from sounding like Feist on “Ghost Tonight” to sounding like a combination between Ingrid Michaelson and Inara George but she doesn’t bite their styles. She sounds contemporary but she’s difficult to pin down as a vocalist because she’s able to own so many styles.
Also, the variety of songs they offer on “Something” suggests a more mature group: Polachek and Wimberly nail poppy hooks whenever they want to, but they don’t make them their crutch. “Cool As A Fire” is a somber, fragile song with lyrics like “Nothing ever lasts forever” repeated as the song comes to an end. Historically, Chairlift hasn’t written about despair but they’re successful in creating a downtrodden track. “Turning”, is heavily influenced by chamber-pop, slathered with reverb to create a blanket of sound. Chairlift still focuses on writing indie-pop but hearing them testing new sounds is encouraging, especially because they embrace each style enthusiastically.
From the title of the album, you might think it’s a forgettable or bland collection of songs by a band that may not really care about how they’re perceived. However, “Something” allows listeners to see Chairlift as a reinvented musical entity. They actually took the feedback from their last album and used it to build their strongest album yet. “Something” is more than just a band growing, it’s their inclusion of many popular sounds and adding them to their repertoire. Chairlift have completely avoided falling into boring cliches and has forged a new path for their music.
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