When I reviewed Hey
Ocean's first album over a year ago, I praised it for being honest,
and relatively light material. It was upbeat and fun enough to be
pop music, but smart and sophisticated enough to earn a reputation to
be much more than that. As the years have gone by, Hey Ocean! have
been gaining more and more popularity, not just in their native
Vancouver, but across Canada as they've toured across the country and
been regular on CBC radio. Not to mention that they've achieved a
healthy level of success entirely independently. Still unsigned to
any major label, one listens to the band knowing that they've become
a Vancouver indie staple simply by making great accessible music.
Their second album,
It's Easier To Be Somebody Else in some ways seems like a
logical follow up for the band, but in other ways, it defies some of
our expectations. First, the actual production sound of the album is
oddly low fi, especially for a band who has an EP and full length
album behind them which are produced better. Maybe 'better' isn't the
right word, after all, it likely was a conscious decision. The
previous releases were produced more crisply perhaps? This album
sounds kind of like a live jam album, which has a charm in and of
itself. In fact, the instrumental track “The Jimmy Switch” and
the hip-hop song “Vegabond” sound like live recordings to me,
complete with crowd murmurs. It brings me right back to the live show
of theirs that I attended a few years ago. It holds the same
atmosphere, which isn't a bad thing for a band to conjure up. I can't
say for sure if this was the best move for the music, but it isn't a
bad one. And the song writing speaks for itself. It shows that even
when under-produced, it's still strong music and able to retain the
fun nature of their compositions.
Though the album in
some ways has more to offer its predecessor. While there are a lot of
fun and crowd pleasing tunes on here, the album has much more
variation in song writing and tone. There are even some songs that I
find a little bit dark on here. Their song “Fifteen Words” has a
decidedly more serious tone than most of their songs, but it's a
brilliant song and proves that their emotional landscape isn't
limited and they can stay true to their style as they explore new
territory. Their song “Humaita” is another change of pace for
them, as it's a solemn and simple little tune. But its relatively
simple structure is just as effective as any of their tracks and it
proves to be one of the most memorable songs on here. Their lyrical
choices in that song paint a strangely clear picture despite there
not being that much material displayed. It's like a piece of art
with few brush strokes, yet the image is conveyed.
They do allow
themselves to have a little fun, so don't worry about a dramatic
change of pace. “A Song About California” is a fun poke at how
writing a song about the popular state seems to be a right of passage
for many bands. It's a fun and infectious track. The song “Fish”
talks about one girl's dream to swim in the ocean. It's a charming
and witty song, with perhaps one of the best lyrical hooks in the
chorus I've heard in years. It feels like the kind of song a band
called Hey Ocean! should be writing. It just kind of makes sense.
The usual strengths of
their music are ultimately what make the album work as a whole. Their
genre is still difficult to define, as it fuses jazz, funk, world
music, and rock into a great mesh of sounds. The two lead singers
sound great together, but aren't the sole personality of the band. A
lot of the energy comes from the equally important rhythm section as
the drums and bass give the music the groove it needs to feel
complete. It just seems like it's the right group of creative minds
put together. I suspect that they recognize this and that's why they
remain independent. They could go out and get signed and lose some
of their creative control in exchange for more radio play, but they
have a good sound and a growing fan base so why bother? The
transition doesn't seem necessary and I hope that Hey Ocean! continue
to recognize that. I can only hope that their next album is as
strong as this one because It's Easier To Be Somebody Else is
a superb collection of songs that are adventurous, memorable and
meaningful.
4.5 Stars
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