It's been twelve-odd years since Thurston last released a record of what could comfortably be described as pop music, and Trees Outside the Academy is a seamless collection of catchy, catchy pop songs.
Contrary to the picture on the cover of the record, Thurston in fact spends the bulk of his time playing an acoustic guitar. If that weren't unexpected enough, his principal cohort (apart from fellow yoofer, Steve Shelley, on drums) is violinist, Samara Lubelski. These rather unpredictable developments, it must be said, gel completely to make for a record that is criminally catchy and criminally well written.
Never fear, this record isn't without its noisy moments: case in point, the squall that introduces "Fri/end," before morphing into what is easily the catchiest song the album, or, alternatively, the squall into which the instrumental, "Off Work," dissolves before regaining its composure. These moments, though, are more often means — adornment, even — than they are ends. Even when J Mascis supplies a blistering* guitar lead (as he does for four songs, including the instrumental title track and a spectacular lead-out to the album's second catchiest song, "Wonderful Witches + Language Meanies") he shows admirable restraint, managing to not drown everything with his guitar heroics/histrionics. (Frankly, I didn't think he had it in him.)
There are three instrumentals in toto, not including the last track, which is a recording of Thurston fooling around with a tape recorder at thirteen years of age. Of these, two are more substantial than the others: the aforementioned title track and "American Coffin," which, constructed out of electric guitar and piano, is beautifully cacophonic with quite obvious political overtones. The remaining track is the aptly titled "Free Noise Among Friends," which is, well, 30-odd seconds of free noise.
Fortunately, though the guitar freak-out may have given way to a country-fried/folk duet with Charalambides' Christina Carter, as in the case of "Honest James," everything on Trees Outside the Academy is flawless, with not a wasted moment. In particular, the inclusion of Lubelski is inspired as her violin adds both texture and warmth to every song on which she appears.
This record is worth whatever poetry you're asked to part for it.
*I'm pretty sure ‘blistering' is the word of choice when describing a Mascis guitar lead.
i'm happy, ma. i'm having fun
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Reviewed on Thursday, 17 January 2008