Post Description

Release Notes ------------------------------------------------------------- -

   If Beach Fossils' eponymous debut was the quintessential Brooklyn rooftop
   party soundtrack for last year, What a Pleasure is what happens when the
   party gets rained out. The band may not venture into genuinely depressing
   territory, but there's a wistful feeling that courses through it. On "Out in
   the Way", head Fossil Dustin Payseur and Wild Nothing's Jack Tatum sing in
   unison, "Everything feels different now here without you." The EP's final
   track is titled "Adversity". Clearly, this is a different look from the band
   who made being carefree sound so alluring on "Lazy Day".

   Even though the song is about the moments that make you overwhelmed with
   happiness, "Fall Right In" sounds anxious and contemplative, like it's a
   referencing a love long since passed. The pensive guitar lines have something
   to do with the feeling, but it's mostly because Payseur's detached vocals are
   too plaintive to display the exuberance of romance. There's a similar
   disposition on "Face It", where he pledges to "give up the city life" for his
   paramour. These tunes create an interesting dichotomy-- joyous lyrics
   delivered solemnly.

   The other tunes on What a Pleasure sound like scaled-back variations of
   themes explored to their fullest potential on the band's debut, which is odd
   considering how much more collaborative this record is. One of the biggest
   drawing points on Beach Fossils-- which Payseur wrote and recorded by
   himself-- was the way every instrument was written directly in relation to
   everything going on around it. It was carefully arranged in the way a jazz or
   classical piece might be. Here, Payseur wrote the songs along with bassist
   John Pe±a, and it shows. On certain songs, the bassline provides much of the
   instrumental melody during the verses, which spreads things out a little, but
   oses some of Payseur's compositional flair in the process. The aforementioned
   "Out in the Way" sounds like the exact midpoint between Beach Fossils and
   Wild Nothing, which is very pretty but also a little superfluous.

   This is rectified on "Calyer", where a sun shower of guitar work provides
   what is probably the EP's best moment. It's a tune that won't catch you as
   remarkable on the first few listens, until you start to notice all of the
   counter-melody blooming between the guitars. But this moment is fleeting, and
   a few short minutes later, the ending of "Adversity" is meant to sync right
   back into opener "Moments". It's one of the times where it seems like the
   songs on What a Pleasure bleed into each other, with the really bright ideas
   coming in small batches. It'll be interesting to see where Beach Fossils go
   from here, because What a Pleasure is the type of release that shows they're
   talented, but still have a little work to do fully capitalize on it.

- Track List ---------------------------------------------------------------- -

  01. Moments                                                           ( 1:04)
  02. What A Pleasure                                                   ( 2:32)
  03. Fall Right In                                                     ( 2:33)
  04. Out In The Way                                                    ( 3:52)
  05. Face It                                                           ( 3:34)
  06. Distance                                                          ( 2:20)
  07. Calyer                                                            ( 3:09)
  08. Adversity                                                         ( 4:03)