Watercolor titled Sunrise and Mountain by Oscar Bluemner, 1928
Magic Kids are evidently proud of being from Memphis,Tennessee - to the point that they named their record after their town. This move may give people a misleading impression about the band's music, though. Memphis has a long, rich heritage of soulful, grimy music, and Magic Kids' baroque power-pop can only legitimately claim any direct lineage in the quieter moments of Big Star's discography. Memphis is a collection of songs best described by the word "classy" - from the song structures to the horn and string arrangements, the band's sense of fun is the only thing from keeping their music from crossing the line into "stilted and over-sophisticated" territory.
The balance between this classiness and fun-loving-ness can be heard in the album's much-circulated tracks "Hey Boy" and "Superball". The former bounces along on a jaunty harpsichord-and-horns riff that screams Pet Sounds, but the call-and-response vocals really make the song work. "Superball" moves a little faster than this band can pull off safely, especially weighted down with an intricate arrangement of strings and horns. But, even though it threatens to come off the rails or descend into a muddy mess at any minute, the song hangs together with excellent results.
The members of Magic Kids are too young to cite the Beach Boys as a direct influence - they're young enough to have grown up with dads that listened to XTC and REM, but they don't seem to connected with current trends either. If anything, I find that their sound falls somewhere in between - more than anything else, the songs on Memphis remind me of cerebral '90s power-pop like Zumpano and Velocity Girl. The connection to Zumpano's second album, Goin' Through Changes, seems like the most apt comparison to me - the songs have a similar baroque quality that seems, at first, to get in the way of the songs' hooks. After a couple listens, though, it all falls together, making the album a thoroughly satisfying listen. The second half of Memphis flags a little with its more contemplative vibe, but I'm liking the whole record more and more as I get into it.
Where "Superball" and "Hey Boy" are the stars of the album, the song that represents Magic Kids' overall approach best is "Summer". Vocalist Bennett Foster showcases the two sides of his sweet common-cold-sufferer's voice with its mellow lower register and light falsetto with a song that floats along on a pocket-orchestra bed before breaking into a nice "tropicalia" section at the end. Summer's almost over, so I recommend giving this song as many listens as you can squeeze in before the leaves start to change colors.
"Summer" by Magic Kids
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