Ducktails - "The Flower Lane"

Artist: Ducktails

Album: The Flower Lane

Label: Domino Records

Release Date: January 29^th, 2013

Review by: Sean Kayden

Matt Mondanile of the indie rock outfit Real Estate has been making solo albums under the moniker Ducktails for sometime now.  With his latest endeavor, “The Flower Lane,” Mondanile takes a tangential turn by including the band Big Troubles to back him as well as a few other musicians lending a hand. This new collaborative approach has Ducktails veering into a new soundscape, one that isn’t all lo-fi with fuzzy guitars and echo-y vocals. Instead the “studio” like resonance feels more professional than ever before with saxophones, synths, pianos and clearer vocals to boot. If anything, the sound of Ducktails is on a much larger scale, but loses some of its intimate and tight sound. “The Flower Lane” is an easy listening pop record that is much more expressive and expansive than previous efforts have proven to be. With the combination of soft rock, pop, and jazz this new foray of a shared band experience has benefited Ducktails in many ways, but has also taken away their certain, distinctive charm.  

“Ivy Covered House” floats gently along in a breezy sort of way. There is a hazy feel to it, but never does it develop into anything much greater. As of most the songs do here, they’re all very pleasant, but Ducktails dare to take any bold risks. The title track has a nice feel to it. It moves along very smoothly and is the ideal song while sitting outside on your porch enjoying the springtime. Everything on “The Flower Lane” is structured differently than previous Ducktails’ material. There’s more songwriting to go along with the songs, but don’t expect anything remotely deep or insightful. The lyrics play a minor role as their meanings seem either vague or inessential. However, the album is a lot fuller, more polished and easily more accessible than Ducktails’ last three albums. There’s more to grasp you here with the arrangements even if the lyrics merely play second fiddle.

Mondanile draws influences from 60s pop to psychedelic rock. Each song is sonically pleasing and there are no noticeable mishaps along the way. In the end, “The Flower Lane” is a departure for Ducktails, but a rather safe bet for one to take. The music is both easy going and pleasing, but the album lacks a heartbeat. There’s no soul behind it. It’s a bunch of songs that have no interconnection to one another. While the production was boosted quite noticeably, the songwriting deeply suffers as well as little risk was taken. It’s difficult to ignore “The Flower Lane” and while it surely isn’t what many fans may have been looking for, the change in course may serve those looking for something different. Too bad different doesn’t always correlate to memorable.

Grade: 6.9 out of 10

Key Tracks: “Under Cover,” “Assistant Director,” “Academy Avenue”

Published by Mountain Views News on March 24, 2013
http://mtnviewsnews.com/v07/htm/n12/p10.htm