by David Wilikofsky
Water From Your Eyes have always been pop tricksters; this is, after all, a band who had their greatest success with an album called Somebody Else’s Song, and then subsequently released a covers album called Somebody Else’s Songs. You may know the Brooklyn based duo of Nate Amos and Rachel Brown for their solo work as This Is Lorelei and Thanks For Coming respectively, but the Water From Your Eyes moniker has always showcased the two at their most irreverent. On their latest album (and first for longtime Undrcurrents’ favorite Wharf Cat Records) Structure, the duo’s sense of humor, along with an attention to minute detail, takes center stage.
Perhaps the ethos of the album is most evident in its sequencing, which is divided into two perfectly symmetrical halves. Each side opens with a sweeping, cinematic overture. Next we move into the fractured, disorienting dance track, which gives way to a short spoken word interlude. Finally, each side is punctuated with a different version of the same song, “Quotations” or “”Quotations””. This structure is easily missed on a cursory listen, but as you hear it over and over the album’s crisp lines and sharp edges begin to come into focus. This slight of hand is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the band’s sense of playfulness, which permeates everything. Repeated words and phrases reconfigure themselves, with lyrics becoming jumbled echoes of previous ones. When you reach the sixth track you find its title is “Track Five.” It’s a sonic hall of mirrors, music designed to disorient while bringing a smile to your face.
While the structural details of the album are undoubtedly fun, they mean very little if the songs aren’t up to snuff. Luckily Structure is more than just high concept tomfoolery. I’m personally most enamored of the band when they’re at their loudest and most energetic; “Track Five” is a post apocalyptic disco banger that manages to be both willfully abrasive and delicately atmospheric, while the first version of “Quotations” careens forward with a lurching beat and razor sharp guitar lines. But there’s a lot to appreciate everywhere you look. Opener “When You’re Around” is a swooning, treacly pop song on the surface whose avowals of love begin to take on an undertone of desperation. “Monday” is filled with swelling, cinematic instrumentals, and the final version of “”Quotations”” is built on a pulsing and disorienting vocal loop. It’s a set of music that stands tall on its own merits, with or without the high concept jokes.