Joywave - Content

Joywave
Content
2017
Spotify

Joywave are one of those bands who you are supposed to like. They tick all the boxes: somewhat indie, dreamy electronics and poppy enough to dance to. It is music that you are supposed to be into right now. However for some reason I have never been able to fully by in. Their first album 2015's How Do You Feel Now? Felt much more pop centric than this record as they try to slide more into the almost Radiohead side of things. It is a lot of sound and echos to throw at the wall yet only rarely does something stick. The six minute "Going to a Place" has moments of real beauty but it takes so long to get there that by the time they arrive you are already bored. The pull between being "content" in their craft and providing "content" for the masses is the crux of this album reflecting on what those two things actually mean. Is content really art? Is art really content? those are just some of the things that Joywave are looking to explore. "Little Lies You're Told" lays it all out pretty plainly asking you to question what you hear and really dig into what is going on behind the curtain. These are things most of us know but often don't delve all that deep into. The (pun intended) content of the album however feels clunky and overwrought here. Of course a dark electronic album is going to be about big government and overzealous Youtubers, because what else would it have to say in 2017? While it feels like Joywave know what they are talking about, and really believe it, the record is just missing an element to bring all these ideas together and make them cohesive.

One of the really frustrating parts of the record is when those really special moments hit you they are quite transcendent, but they come with baggage which is hard to get over. For example "Thanks. Thanks for Coming" begins with an ending and the band thanking the crowd for being there over some indistinct fuzz, but then it shifts into this really great downtempo beat which sounds fantastic until they ruin it towards the end with this almost screech played over it. This happens so many times where deep into a song you'll hear that moment of inspiration, that nugget of goodness, but it's fleeting and they can't seem to hold on to it. This record is such a departure from their last you find yourself missing those lighter moments, but hell 2017 sure as shit ain't 2017 so the darker tone makes sense. "Shutdown" is one of the more bombastic tracks with a big electric guitar driving the chorus. At times it seems like this album requires a much deeper dive in order to tease out it's full breath of knowledge and you just wish the really special moments were placed more at the forefront. You have to respect the fact that instead of shying away from a challenge Joywave have really attempted something here rather than just trying to make their debut again. We'll just have to wait and see if this is a new direction or just another change in their evolving style.

7.0 out of 10