MECCA NORMAL
The Observer
Kill Rockstars
· Vancouver duo’s 20-year collaboration shines with a meandering dozen of simple, mostly stunning rock lullabies.
Drawing from the bare bones of guitars and vocals, Jean Smith and David Lester sparingly use sax, piano, keyboards and occasional percussion to punctuate their sometimes shoegazing, sometimes rocking-ever-so-slightly tales. With most lyrics dancing around the experiences Smith has had with online dating, songs like "Attraction is Ephemeral" open the awkward window on a first sexual encounter with hints of desperation, resignation and misrepresentation.
The Observer’s first nine tracks stride purposefully and intensely through relationships, desire and frank musings, and then the album swerves abruptly and dives into environmental and political noise before returning to personal narratives. With Smith’s crackling and distinctive vocals conveying a delicate insecurity gently simmering beneath a veneer of strength, she produces a contradictory yet complementary feeling that matches the minimal instrumentation.
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