User talk:Andyhull1

Beyond the verbiage of its title, there’s a captivating internal debate that manifests itself aurally. The Atlanta-based quartet has all the trappings of a straightforward pop-rock band, but none at all. “Slow to Learn” is everything a Top 40 radio single should be, while “Play It Again, Sam” treads on weighty emotional territory most Top 40 bands have only seen in P.T. Anderson movies. It’s like mining for caviar in a candy shell. Yet, somehow the band makes it work. Nowhere is this more apparent than “I’d Rather Have” where a beguilingly innocent chorus hook gives way to an emotive, crescendo ending.

Recorded over several months at two separate studios, sonically the EP reflects its long gestation period but avoids glossy overproduction. And as a whole, Manchester Orchestra wears its influences proudly but not stubbornly. 19-year-old frontman Andy Hull has obviously taken a cue from Pedro the Lion’s songwriting vault (see “Alice and Interiors”) and meshed that with a Death Cab for Cutie aesthetic (see “The Procession”). But Hull and his band are young, and You Brainstorm is essentially a testament to both that youth and its subsequent potential. And when experience matriculates into that pre-existing talent, great music will spring from this simply good music. The You Brainstorm EP is just the first step in that process.

Palmer Houchines

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