Heave Media

Matt Pond PA's Ninth Lacks Surprise

Despite a distinct narrative, these moves seem all pre-rehearsed.

Matt Pond PA

The Dark Leaves

Released on Apr 13, 2010

The latest from Philly based artist Matt Pond PA, The Dark Leaves, is an album fronting as the love-gone-wrong movie we’ve all seen before, most notably seen in the tone changes throughout the album.  This is the ninth full-length LP out of a career spanning 13 years, and thus gives a steady, unsurprising, and predictable performance.  There are a few high notes on the album, but at times they are ephemeral in the lofty shadow of soft, banal tracks.  Here’s the skinny on how this album pans out: 

In “Starting,” boy meets girl.  Sparks fly, pants drop, and she ends up leaving fingerprints all over his heart.  It’s a steamy track, with moody pop sounds in the same vein as The Stills.  It intertwines chipper percussion with Pond’s vocals, which are outstanding on this song, and very complementary string play.  Pond sings, “Less talk, more arms, more legs, more swinging back and forth / Lights on, lights off, I know that I want to be adored.”   

He follows up with “Running Wild,” which instrumentally, is riding the upbeat groove and dances along with the rockabilly flair of tapping spoons against washboards.  Add on track three, “Specks,” and you’re witnessing the part of the movie when infatuation blossoms into affection.  Yay.   

Then it happens—there’s a tragic hiccup in the rolling sequence of the album and we are left with “Remains,” which actually is the most soundtrack-worthy song on the album.  (Maybe I’m just thinking that because it starts off with, “I can’t remember which movie taught me purpose / I can’t remember which movie taught me pain.”)  A bubbling guitar interlude enters, but doesn’t engage, and Pond’s vocals lose the joyous reign they once had.  “Sparrows” serves as a flashback to “Starting” and plays through as a rather odd rendition.  It’s similar in tempo and feel, but in an altogether higher key and with Pond’s singing not nearly as alluring (although flashbacks are usually poor substitutes for the real thing).   

“Brooklyn Fawn” is one of the most sobering tracks on the album.  The instrumentation plays in a bass layer, with lulling percussion and drawn out notes, Pond hangs onto the ends of words and offers up the sulkier and softer sound that has been ubiquitous on past albums.  At this point in the movie, our guy is in that period where he feels alone even in a crowded room.  But then “Ruins” happens and things get a little exciting.  The rousing keys and hand claps suggest that maybe Pond’s character is ready to dip his toes into the world and actually consider finding another fish in the sea.  This playful performance could find its way to arenas housing the likes of Cut Copy or the new Rogue Wave.   

So now you’re thinking to yourself, “Yeah!  He’s going to get back on the horse and find another love interest.”  Wrong.  Pond decides, musically, that the guy runs into his former lover at a neighborhood bar, and decides to punch himself in the gut and wallow a bit longer.  Pond’s intonation changes so dramatically on here that it’s hard to tell what is supposed to happen on this song.  It’s a cross between whispering and soft wind blowing, and a sure cliff drop from “Ruins.”  

But “The Dark Leaves Theme” is what happens when determination kicks in for our lovelorn character.  It starts out kind of slow, but gradually, the guitar picks up momentum and the drums are like riding your dad’s Harley rather than a tricycle.  Pond comes back with subtle somberness and these are his regular vocals at their best.  End it all with “First Song,” which begins with what sounds like a guest appearance by Freelance Whales.  With the crispest strings on the whole album and vocals laced with a little taste of The Shins, there’s an exultant air flowing through the whole song.   

If you liked Matt Pond PA’s last eight albums, you should probably buy this one and then tell all your friends how much you enjoy it, because you will.  But if you’re on the fence or have no idea who this is, you’re facing a relatively stagnant gesture of ten tracks with a few highlights that might garner an “ooh” or an “ahh” from you.

Posted by Beth Yeckley on Apr 06, 2010 @ 6:00 am