I'm definitely adding Perth-based dream pop outfit Methyl Ethyl to my list of promising Australian indie acts (which also includes The Paper Kites and The Cairos). The band currently consists of singer-songwriter and chief melody-maker Jake Webb, drummer Chris Wright and bassist Thom Stewart.
"Twilight Driving" is a standout track from their debut album Oh Inhuman Spectacle (2014). It won them the Best Single Award at the Western Australia Awards (WAM) in 2015 (they also won the Best Pop Act award that year). Local recognition became international with their debut US shows at New York's CMJ conference, which earned them a record deal with 4AD, who then re-released their album globally in 2016.
"Twilight Driving" is a wistful, dreamy song about heartbreak, loneliness, longing (ostensibly in Perth's isolated wilderness) and the recuperative promises of the open road, built around an unexpectedly catchy chorus:
"Twilight driving better watch out for the 'roos,
Well it's the early morning baby
I say why don't you hit the snooze"
Lyrics: Genius
A sensual sax solo and a bliss-inducing melody creates a lightly euphoric soundscape that diverts away from the track's lyrical malaise. Pitchfork's Stuart Berman has pointed out the contradiction within the album, which Webb blends into "something more intimate and claustrophobic, with a distinct, disarming voice that infuses his deceptively serene soundscapes with a nervous tension ...The result is dream-pop for insomniacs—shadowy, nocturnal music whose surface shimmer barely conceals the fidgety, restless soul lurking underneath".
With this kind of confessional lyrics, irresistible melodies and psych-pop/art-rock influences, it's hard to not compare Methyl Ethyl to Tame Impala. I'm hoping that they will be able to strike out into slightly more unexplored territory with their sophomore effort.
