The Brunettes - Structures & Cosmetics

The Brunettes
Structures & Cosmetics
Sub Pop Records
Grade: A-

If you have never heard the Brunettes before it admittedly takes a few spins truly to get into them. But with several consecutive exposures you soon fall under the Brunettes’ fun indie pop love barge spell. This Auckland, New Zealand duo of Jonathan Bree and Heather Mansfield offer nine songs of joy on their debut full-length for Sub Pop; after getting noticed opening for the Postal Service among others. The cutesy vocal playing of Bree and Mansfield matched with the eclectic music brings to mind Belle & Sebastian crossed with the quirkiness of the Fiery Furnaces. When Mansfield plays off 50s vocal coyness, Bree switches between various tones, and the catchiness excels, the whole endeavor becomes sheer brilliance. In no better place is this seen then in the mind-blowing “Her Hairagami Set,” which moves between a 50s pop drenched version of that song during the beach scene in the Karate Kid and a darker new wave chorus. Not every song on Structures & Cosmetics is as stunning as “Her Hairagami Set,” and some fall flat (e.g., “Credit Card Mail Order”), but you bop around to opener the slow crescendoed “Brunettes Against Bubblegum Youth,” the ridiculously cute “Stereo (Mono Mono)” where mono channels are played to max effect, the quirky pop song “If You Were Alien,” and the acoustic “Small Town Crew.” Although the Brunettes are a duo at their core, they employ a gaggle of touring musicians in order to provide a fully concentrated show. Everything screams awesomeness!