Lightspeed Champion Falling Off The Lavender Bridge CD

Dev Hynes, guitarist from the short lived agit-punk/pop band Test Icicles is Lightspeed Champion. Melding folky pop with country rock, his Texas roots and U.K. upbringing make for an interesting musical culture clash on his debut, FALLING OFF THE LAVENDER BRIDGE. With a little help from some friends at Saddle Creek Records, Hynes deftly crafts tunes based on poppy male/female vocals, melodic chamber-pop, and a sense of both drama and humor.
Leaving the noisy terrain of the Test Icicles behind for the more relaxed territory of the singer/songwriter didn't exactly mellow Dev Hynes. For sure, the sound of his new project, Lightspeed Champion, is softer, with violins, pedal steel, and tender female vocal harmonies (sung by London folk singer Emmy the Great) among other traditional singer/songwriter favorites providing the cottony backing. Recording in Omaha with Mike Mogis (who's run the boards for loads of indie rockers, most notably Bright Eyes) and using a conglomeration of musicians from Tilly and the Wall, the Good Life, and the Faint, it would be hard to come up with a sound that didn't conjure up Bright Eyes and their ilk. It's a rich and cinematic sound with plenty of lovely playing and deft arrangements, made more listenable by Hynes' pleasant melodies. So the sound is softer and the melodies are nice, but Hynes lyrics speak of turmoil and struggle. Indeed, Hynes is not a happy camper. Licking open wounds, being sick in other people's mouths, scratching out eyes, stapling down eyes, being bathed in cold sweat, and shaking with tension are just some of the happy topics Hynes touches on. He generally sounds miserable and depressed as hell; sometimes angry ("Devil Tricks for a Bitch"), sometimes snarky and mean ("Let the Bitches Die"), sometimes just plain morose ("All to Shit"). The disconnect between the gentle and welcoming music and the tense, off-putting lyrics can be a bit much and Hynes is only too aware of this, seeming to take perverse pleasure in going as far as he can lyrically. This underlying sense of humor is one of the saving graces of the record; another is the number of really good songs that don't worry about being "difficult" and reach for real emotions. The melancholy tale of missed love connections "Everyone I Know Is Listening to Crunk" is one of these; "No Surprise" is another. Overall though, Falling Off the Lavender Bridge is a bit of a slog to get through. Maybe amping up the music to match the tone of the lyrics might have given the record the kick it needed; perhaps cutting back on the lyrical excess would have been the fix. Whatever the case may be, what's left is a record with some promise but too many flaws to be truly enjoyable. ~ Tim SendraSpin (p.95) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "[L]ushly orchestrated pop rock -- adding classical strings, woodwinds, banjo, and a good share of Saddle Creek's countrified twang."
Entertainment Weekly (p.65) - "[With a] lovely parade of kitchen-sink instrumentation." -- Grade: B
Uncut (p.80) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[R]ecalling an improbable hybrid of Wilco, Aztec Camera and Todd Rundgren. The songs are, by turns, witty, eccentric and often oddly moving."
Q (Magazine) (p.96) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "The 10-minute 'Midnight Surprise' is the album's sprawling, beguiling centrepiece, but 'Everyone I Know Is Listening To Crunk' is its bewildered, adorable heartbeat."
Mojo (Publisher) (p.112) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[Hynes'] vocals revel in combative tension while showing sharp lyrical talons and acid humour..."
Clash (magazine) (p.109) - "Swapping synthesizers for cello, oboe and pedal steel, Dev Hynes has carved out a hugely distinctive collection of balladry."