Six Thoughts While Listening to Youth Lagoon’s Savage Hills Ballroom
- The trumpets in “The Knower” are everything I never knew I needed.
- This album would be perfect for cruising an empty city street at night in Michael Cera’s Yugo from Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist. A girl can dream, right?
- No holdin’ back with these lyrics, Trevor Powers has gotten pretty sassy and he certainly puts the “Savage” in Savage Hills Ballroom.
- I hate instrumentals, but I oddly appreciated “Doll’s Estate”
- If Wondrous Bughouse and The Year of Hibernation are your two across the street neighbors who are really nice and always give you Christmas and birthday cards, then Savage Hills Ballroom is that guy who lives all the way at the end of the street who is one of those dark artistic types who slightly scares you but also is super alluding.
- I’d like to have breakfast for dinner with Powers and question him about his inspirations for this album, there’s so many feelings to be felt.
To sum it up, Powers’ “dream pop” facade has been substantially reduced in this album.
It’s apparent he’s reaching for a rawer and grittier sound, yet still allows hints of his prior whimsical vibe to show through in songs like “Officer Telephone.” His vocals are no longer masked and are completely unapologetic.
Savage Hills Ballroom is notably darker and more literal, and while I’m personally biased to his 2011 album The Year of Hibernation, I still really enjoyed his most recent work. You’ll be a “Rotten Human” if you don’t go give it a listen.
And Trevor, if you’re reading this I’m free this weekend for that breakfast for dinner date.
