Best of 2010: Dawson Ludwig on Magic Bullets
December 28, 2010
Magic Bullets – “Lying Around”
Magic Bullets are the type of songwriters that make me uncomfortably jealous. They have a discipline that I could never have in life. They know how to pace a three-minute song and turn it into an original gem of pop art. On their new self-titled album, there is only one track that narrowly breaks the 4-minute mark. This suggests a quiet confidence in their song construction – no need to play that chorus one more time – the listener gets it. No need to repeat that refrain – that would ruin it. They get in, deliver the goods and get out! By the end of the album, you’re left with enough of an appetite to go back for more.
Beyond their songs, Magic Bullets are also impressive in their sonic stubbornness. They are surrounded by the abundant glory of San Francisco’s garage rock renaissance, yet they find inspiration in the overt pop emotion of The Cure, Orange Juice and The Smiths. When the ‘cool’ sound is defined by fuzzy guitars and mumbled vocals, they’ve decided to be emotive and theatrical. This might not work for any other band, but the Magic Bullets are able to pull it off – in large part because they write damn, damn good songs.
Dawson Ludwig is the Marketing Director at Noise Pop.
Comments
Got something to say?
We reserve the right to delete irrelevant or abusive comments. If you wish to make a correction or contact the author of this post, please e-mail us.