[RTR] The Walkmen – Lisbon

We’re back with another Reel Time Review, a feature we copped with the help of Michael Powell from The Decibel Tolls. Think of a review in real time as a variation on the track-by-track, except our thoughts on each track are published right as they pop into our heads while we listen to the music for the first time. When the review is complete we edit for clarity, grammar, and formatting purposes — no other post-production tinkering is allowed.

Today I’ll review, in “reel” time, the upcoming sixth album from The Walkmen: Lisbon.

“Juveniles” (4:27)
0:13 – Off to a great start. In the age of chillwave and witchhouse, there’s something incredibly endearing about good old fashioned Indie Rock.
1:17 – Crisp, punchy guitars, the sounds of a tiny tambourine adorning the snare, and Hamilton Leithauser acing his best Dylan impression. What’s not to love about this band?
3:10 – Here’s the magical moment an opening song needs: Leithauser shouting “You’re one of us or one of them” over loudening (but not necessarily crescendoing) guit+drums+bass, over and over again. A very very solid start to the record.

“Angela Surf City” (3:23)
0:31 – I shouldn’t complain cuz I could listen to Leithauser sing over nails on a chalkboard and it would be sweeter than honey, but this song needs to pick it up…
0:54 – Here’s the kick the song needed! If you happened to catch these boys playing this song on Fallon last week you’ll know the moment I’m talking about. Lights go red, eyes widen, and the entire band bends over backwards for the sheer sake of their art. Amazing.
2:53 – “Can this go on forever?”

“Follow The Leader” (2:01)
0:20 – Muted chaos. Going somewhere?
1:01 – An odd choice for the third track, to place an interlude of sorts so early on in the record. But it’s still enjoyable, for what it’s worth.

“Blue As Your Blood” (4:17)
0:03 – And on and on and on and on and on…
0:17 – …and on. Inventive percussive elements make this feel like a meanderer. Horses always trot before they gallop.
2:00 – Really great string section, although the rest of the song hasn’t strayed far from the path.
2:29 – The Walkmen are fans of guitar and cymbal clashes, aren’t they? I’ve always wanted them to branch out more from their proven sound, and this song actually manages to do that without relying on the excessive use of random-ass instruments or synth patches. Props for that, dudes.

[MP3] “Stranded” (4:27)
0:11 – A swelling horn section dusted with the faintest glisten of reverb. A thumbing bass drum.
1:24 – Switching things up to a slow waltz.
2:51 – They certainly do know how to sway a mofo. I’m damn near shivers. Cue the sappy montage. Old people in love. Little puppies. Cute little grandma kittens.
3:28 – This is too good! If you’re not in love with that horn melody by now you best hit the “next” button. Actually you might as well go watch MTV or download some Kesha singles. This is music intended to birth thousands of tiny winged critters in your stomach, and they’re flapping in a grand unison. I guess I’m floating, or something.

“Victory” (4:07)
0:08 – A bit of criticism here: This little intro bit with the drumstick clicks and staccato guitar melody sounds good, but with a bit more attention to the mixing and engineering it could have been something incredible. The Walkmen still have yet to pick up on the little touches in the way that Spoon has (for example). Just a thought.
1:27 – But then again, with sonic explosions like the ones that earmark most of their best songs, there’s hardly a need to sweat the finer details. They’re always at their best in the thrash — appendages flailing, guitar strings near their breaking point, mic stand about to topple. I really don’t get what all the fuss was about The Morning Benders, save for that one opening track.

“All My Great Designs” (4:43)
0:20 – For a band so set (or stuck) on one sound, it never ceases to amaze me how they manage to pluck melodies like this out of thin air.
1:34 – I’m gonna wager that this track becomes one of my favorites from the album. It’s very simple so far, to be sure, but it’s exactly what the album needed at this point.
2:23 – Beautiful vocal harmonies, great little bridge.
3:25 – Is that guitar riff stuck in your head yet? What does it say that I can identify with a four-second guitar melody as easily as I can this one?

“Woe Is Me” (3:29)
0:59 – Not really feeling this track. I hope I’m not all “Walkmen’d out”. It’s a downright terminal affliction if left untreated. Woe is me.

“Torch Song” (4:08)
0:20 – I’m beginning to think The Walkmen might not be the best band for a real time track-by-track. I’m running out of ways to describe the same things over and over again. Dammit.
1:31 – I should slightly take back what I said about these dudes not paying too much attention to the finer elements. There are quite a few layers of sound here, the most pleasing of which is the almost hymnal vocal chants that set the stage here beautifully.
3:16 – After a brief hiatus, those syrupy vocal harmonies are back to carry us off to the end. I can’t think of a better ending to the third-to-last song.

“While I Shovel The Snow” (4:00)
0:10 – “Well they say you can’t please everyone / but I’m stuck on a winning streak.”
0:48 – The vocals are really shining here, as they have throughout the album. There’s barely more than a bit of guitar, subtly tucked beneath Leithauser’s affected croon.
1:59 – It’s a sleeper, and I’m sure there are more than a handful of people who’d think that’s exactly what a penultimate song should be. I’d imagine we’re setting up for something, ahem, epic as the closer.
2:57 – A sleeper but a winner. Charming and incandescent. As humble as The Walkmen can get. A really nice track, if nice is what you’re looking for.

“Lisbon” (5:57)
1:15 – Not quite the stunner I expected. A sleeper but not a very interesting one just yet. Stay tuned, there’s still just under five minutes of potential awesomeness to endure.
2:36 – THERE IT IS. That’s pure bliss right there. Bending guitar notes, crescendo beckoning for our ears. I’m yours, Lisbon, whenever you want me.
5:17 – It disappeared for a bit but now it’s back, that moment of zen amped up with horns and confident drumming by Matt Barrick.
5:35 – Le sigh… it didn’t last. What could have been a brilliant closer was reduced to a six-minute testament to missed opportunity. Take those few seconds of brilliance, spread them out, hell even crescendo the living fuck out of this tune, and you’ll end up with a much better closing track.

Although I’m slightly disappointed by the end, The Walkmen have once again produced an album that’s just as worthy of your attention as anything else this year. If you don’t mind the relative sameness of The Walkmen’s sound, Lisbon is an album within which you’ll find yourself lost… occasionally you’ll be looking for things you might not quite find, and although you might not get there, the trip is well worth taking.

Reel Time Score: 7.6/10