The Lonely Forest - We Sing the Body Electric!

By Liem Vu

In the follow-up album to The Lonely Forest’s 2007 full-length, Nuclear Winter, the Washington quartet delivers another offering of ethereal vocals, earthy acoustics and infectious harmonies that echo an era of music long gone following the recent epidemic of vocoders and auto-tuners.

Proving that they are just not another one-trick “folk-indie” pony, the album opens with Two Pink Pills, an answer to the age-old adage of having multiple verses with repeating choruses. In its one min fifty-eight second runtime, the ode to sleeping pills opens with minimalist and bleak imagery thanks to the effortless serenading of lead singer John Van Deusen. With just two lyrics, the track slowly becomes engulfed in harmonies and propulsive percussion followed by a distorted ringing and finally resolving with an acoustic, four-part Barbershop-like resolve.

Other notable tracks include the whimsically titled and arranged Tomato Soup, with a piano riff that will strike up more nostalgic warm and fuzzies than a TLC marathon of Jon & Kate Plus 8. Harmonies make a resurgence here as a metaphorically lyric asking “tell me love when did my world burn down?” With such lyrical ambiguities, Tomato Soup clearly plays a larger and metaphorical role than just a reference to the Campbell’s Condensed Soup. But for once, its actually a relief to be kept in the dark as we all know subtexts are hardly ever subtle (see: Britney’s If U Seek Amy).

While a 15-track album is a tad lengthy in comparison to other LPs, We Sing the Body Electric! flies with its organic tunes. If you’re still stuck on the synth/parody-heavy Lonely Island with T-Pain, it’s about time you immigrate to The Lonely Forest. Trust us, you’ll get more street cred and sonic enjoyment in the long run.

Other Tracks to Check Out:

We Sing In Time

Golden Apples of the Sun Pt. 1 and 2

Release Date: April 21, 2009