Here’s the short review: Incredible indie-pop. One of the year’s best.
Here’s the longer version: Mates of State are a married couple and a band. They take their kids on tour with them and document all their escapades on their blog. How cool is that? Having been in a touring band I can’t imagine the kids running around during sound check or having to (gasp!) be responsible while touring. But hey, with a child of my own now, it seems like the coolest thing in the world. So Mates of State are (for all intents and purposes) a duo and we all know about duo’s don’t we? Well, I’ve listened to Mates of State and either their earlier records just aren’t as immediate and ear-grabbing or evidently I’ve missed something because I’m totally smitten with their latest album Re-Arrange Us. Like totally.
Their absolutely incredible keys-and-drums indie pop is perfect for just about anything. In fact, it is basically perfect in just about every way. Ridiculously catchy, breezy, ultra-melodic, etc… is how I’d describe this one. You really need to hear it though. Words can’t do these melodies justice; they can’t even come close. From the opening of “Get Better,” to the chorus of “Now,” to “The Re-Arranger,” and on through the end of the album you and/or your kids will be singing along in no time. It also doesn’t hurt that the harmonies of husband/wife team Jason Hammel and Kori Gardner are amazing and just seem to be plucked from a warm summer day.
So if you want an album that your kids can sing along to (my 2yo daughter Hailey is particularly fond of “Jigsaw”) that is actually honest to goodness incredible adult indie rock, look no further than the new Mates of State album Re-Arrange Us. It’s out now thanks to our friends at Barsuk Records.
MP3 | Mates of State – My Only Offer Re-Arrange Us
MP3 | Mates of State – Jigsaw Re-Arrange Us
Definitely one of my top three albums of ’08. A friend of mine whose musical tastes differ from mine heard the Mates and said, “This sounds like it could have been played in the background of that first series of Scooby-Doo cartoons, where the gang’s all running from the bad guys or ghosts.” At first I thought he was mocking it, but then I realized he’s mostly right, and that I love their songs all the more for his observation.
I was shocked how stoked I got from listening to this. I’d probably seen MoS 3 or 4 times just from working at shows they played, and I never got the impression they’d ever end up this good. I love Billy’s Scooby-Doo note as well.