The Temper Trap is an Aussie band who got the attention of some folks in the US and UK--notably Jim Abbiss, who’s list of A++ debut albums include Sneaker Pimps awesome triphop explosion Becoming X, Arctic Monkeys Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, Ladytron's Witching Hour, The Editors post-punk The Back Room, and Adele's kinda slow/sappy for me, but still pretty good, 19 -- and put out a superb pop album. It isn't going to revolutionize pop music or make you sit up and go, What have I been missing in Aussie pop?! but it will make you glad you listened.
There is a lot to like about The Temper Trap. The music is approachable and light but with enough guitar and drums to let you know that they can probably make your chest cavity rattle in concert. They employ the use of a, 10 short notes are better than 1 long note, ideology and it really works. It keeps songs moving and energetic even when they’re a bit on the quiet side. Combined with the syncopated drums it shows musical talent and an ability to craft songs that draw the listener into the songs and keep you humming. Keyboards invade a couple of songs on the album and I wasn’t keen on them at first, but they grew on me. Trying to imagine the song without the piano track makes me think it would sound empty and lacking something.
The voice is really the tie that binds the album together. “Dougie” Mandagi, the lead singer, can bust out a falsetto like he is intimately familiar with gonad crushing. It is high, has range, has depth and he can convey a whole spectrum of feeling and meaning there—it is frankly of virtuoso quality, which, when you're talking about making your voice sound like a 12 year old girl and you're an adult guy... i mean, it's great for the music, don't get me wrong, but... how do you discover that talent? How do you perfect it? Hey, hey guys, i can't quite hit that high C, kick me harder!
Gotta sacrifice for the music.
I'm not sure where this whole falsetto thing has come from of late, but it really seems to be cropping up. Silversun Pickups are another band that, at first listen, you think, wow, you don't hear a lot of chick singers fronting a band that sounds like this. She's got some throat there. Oh wait, it's a dude. Matthew Bellamy of Muse is able to hit that registry and sustain it believably--but he usually steers clear of it. There's certainly a number of more "classical" rock singers who did it--Freddy Mercury, Bowie, Jeff Buckley, David Lee Roth (I need to collect myself after putting him in the same sentence as the first three. Okay) and so forth. I'm just wondering where this resurgence in the falsetto came from. Is there a rampant glandular problem with our rock singers?
But, seriously, the vocals make this album. There are tight harmonies and the mixing is layered, unobtrusive and feels correct. In short, it is everything you want in your vocal mix. Additionally, there's no auto-tuning or other vocal BS--they can actually sing. Mix interesting singing with tight beats and good music, and you've got a solid album, through and through.
There really isn't a glaring weakness here, but there also isn't a 5th gear. There are three or four fantastic pop songs, which makes this a standout overall album--especially for a debut. The number of albums with multiple four or five star songs in the rock/pop genre is pretty severely limited. This is one of them. Love Lost, Down River and Soldier On are solid four/borderline five star songs. Sweet Disposition is a solid five star song. Love Lost incorporates the very best of modern pop--tight song, builds, harmonizes, end, 3:30 in length. It is a single tied up with a bow and it is a delicious pop morsel. They out-Coldplay Coldplay--and that is meant as a compliment. Love 'em, hate 'em, whatever--respect that they have consistently put out some of the most successful pop albums of the last decade. Love Lost is as good as anything they've ever put out.
Sweet Disposition raises the whole album. It is a mixture of U2, Silversun Pickups, and, again, that Coldplay pop model. It starts with the picked guitar anthem that draws the listener, followed by foot tapping drums and clinging vocals and it all builds up to a Dangerous Driving Song. It veritably wills your foot down on the gas pedal, demanding higher and higher speeds. All the while, the song never loses the pop thread that ties it to the album, that makes it part of the cohesive whole.
This is, without doubt, the best album I've heard thus far this year. They will go far and they will become big. It will probably take an album or two after this one--again, see Silversun Pickups. You'll know this name in a couple years.
