Collegiate Times

The indie music world has become veritably obsessed with recreating the melancholic, synthesized sounds of ’80s pop.

This fixation on all things electronic and new wave resulted in a spike of popularity for acts such as Wild Nothing, Twin Shadow and the lo-fi king, Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti. Vocals were drenched in reverb, guitars were run through delay pedals, drums were programmed on a drum machine — most of the music was capable of being produced by one person alone in a basement.

The dream pop movement has its endearing qualities. Plenty of amazing music has come out of the trend. However, it’s refreshing to hear “Dye It Blonde,” Smith Westerns’ fantastic sophomore effort, released Jan. 18 on Fat Possum Records (The Black Keys, Tennis, Wavves). Searing guitar riffs and heavy drum fills are at the top of the mix, foregoing usual mumbled bedroom-pop singing to throw Cullen Omori’s vocals to the front.

None of this is to say that “Dye It Blonde” doesn’t exude a certain sense of nostalgia for the past — various influences from eras long gone are definitely present here. There’s a distinct vibe of ’70s glam rock, the kind that eventually went on to inspire the glossy hairbands of the ’80s. Putting a personal twist on the music they draw inspiration from is something many new artists have difficulty with, especially those emulating ’80s pop.

What’s remarkable about “Dye It Blonde” is Smith Westerns’ ability to cultivate a sound that draws on this wide range of influences, while simultaneously presenting music to listeners that sounds fresh and current.

Perhaps understanding that what they were releasing was going against the grain, the first track, “Weekend,” opens with the distant sound of a synthesizer before a guitar pushes it out of the mix.

Songs such as “Still New” and “All Die Young” are almost deceiving, leading listeners to believe they are going to be just another indie pop-rock song, only to send the chords of a guitar tearing through the pop facade, moving the song straight into the territory of Bowie-esque glam.

Ballad “Smile” represents the more gentle side of Smith Westerns, exploding at the chorus in a wash of beautifully layered vocals and falsettos.

Living up to its title, “Dance Away” features a highly danceable beat, only momentarily giving way to more dramatic guitar flourishes at the hook.

Closing track “Dye The World” shows the band digging back into its glittery roots, asking “Look in the mirror / Are you glamorous?” before surrendering to another scorching guitar solo to close out the album.

Though Smith Westerns’ eponymous debut album was an exercise in fuzzy garage rock, it is clear the talented songwriting present on “Dye It Blonde” was in them from the beginning. With lines like “Love is lovely when you’re young” and “Weekends are never fun unless you’re around here too,” it’s apparent that the band’s goal was to write songs about the pains of being young and in love and the pains of being young and bored — the pains of being young in general.

Themes such as youth and love seem appropriate for the band, considering none of its members are older than 20. Yet, despite being able to connect on a certain level of naivete and youth, they sing from an experienced perspective that comes with age.

While certainly not hoping to see the death of lo-fi pop in indie music, I am interested to see if music like Smith Westerns’ is part of a backlash against it. Even if that does not end up being the case, “Dye It Blonde” proves to be an outstanding, extremely fun pop record by an up-and-coming group of glam rockers. This album is definitely an early contender for any best of 2011 lists. 

A version of this article appeared in the Feb 1 issue of the Collegiate Times.