Review Summary: A relaxed but quite brilliant mariage of the faces of indie-pop bands you've heard, yet still something genuinely unique.
Fine lines are drawn between mellow and unengaging, ones which also curve and, now and again, shift entirely based on expectation, but it takes a confident band to tackle the issue as vociferously as Mariage Blanc do on their eponymous LP. Rarely do they set out a stall claiming real energy, so the key word is
craft, and
Mariage Blanc is craft by the shedload; drifting atmospheres of subtle, luscious pop hooks twist through tracks fronted by abstract lyrics; just think of the sharpest and gentlest edges of the most lovable indie acts you know, and stir until effortless.
Several tracks slide along meandering guitars and electronic piano - think Minus The Bear, because Mariage Blanc did - but carry an Elliott Smith lilt in their vocal uncertainty, and a calm ambition which never forces itself. Melodies float into prominence only to be superceded by another; layers abound, only to be stripped out for a gorgeous interlude. And the rhythms, around which everything illuminates, are the foundation, whether intricate or devilishly simple. True, the persistent bounce makes for a dizzying listen, and certainly not by way of chaotic pace, but it's incredibly hard not to be drawn in.
The screeches of 'Poor Portraits' guitars relieve tension for an earth-shattering moment, but
Mariage Blanc possesses a constancy which begets both cohesion and homogeny, shaping a record whose intrigue rarely relents but would do well to draw breath. Sure, too much of anything is still too much, but here those excesses are balanced and ultimately beaten out by gentle melodies; Mariage Blanc have distance and time to travel before they forge something entirely inspiring, but this
self-titled is a fantastic summation of the raw elements.
