Australia has a lot going for it: compulsory voting, koalas, a unique status as the only country to also be a continent, and so on. But I think I may have just discovered my new favorites thing about Australia: The Triangles, especially their newest record Seventy-Five Year Plan.
It’s all here: the twinkling bells, a gloriously big sound, stray instrumental interludes from all over the place, and melodies so pure that you can’t help but think they sprang out from an alternate universe of sunshine and lollipops. These songs soar, unencumbered by the weight of gravity which presses down on mere mortals like you and I. It’s everything good ever done by I’m From Barcelona on vacation with the optimistic half of Pet Sounds.
But don’t be fooled by the sweet exterior – this is not mere fluff, and they’ve got more than enough edge to keep you honest.
Will It Float – The Triangles
“Will It Float?” in particular is so recklessly happy that it almost blinds you right out of the gate, only revealing itself in full the more you listen. It’s the sound of an endless summer afternoon, before your quite sure if it’s love, when you can’t help but keep glancing out of the corner of your eye to see if she’s looking at you, too. Or maybe it’s a lifetime removed from that day, memories faded and cracked by time but still held together enough to remember the way it felt to touch her gently on the cheek. Either way, I challenge anyone to listen and not feel something.
I still haven’t even heard the whole record, but I’m so impressed with what I have heard that I can heartily recommend it, and look forward to picking up my own copy as soon as I find a way where I don’t get hammered by the exchange rate.
And, as if the music itself wasn’t enough, they’ve also got one of my favorite band websites I’ve seen in a long time, including a ton of free MP3s, a list of songs they’ve covered, and some ruminations on marsupials that somehow end up discussing the likelihood that there really is a Loch Ness monster. Sheer brilliance.
Every song on their site is worth your time, but a couple that really stand out are show-stopping dark-twee version of “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” and the Polyphonic Spree-as-interpreted-by-the-cast-of-Fraggle Rock wonderment that is “Applejack.”
Applejack – The Triangles
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen – The Triangles
Seriously, do yourself a favor and download “Applejack” – you owe yourself three minutes of undiluted happiness at least once every day.