★★★★☆
While it’s timid in comparison to their previous works,Amen & Goodbyemaintains Yeasayer’s track record of producing blissful, angular electropop.
Working through an identity crisis – the result of nearly a decade of solid touring and pushing the band’s experimental limits – Amen & Goodbye is a matured effort. Recorded in a barn in the isolated Catskill Mountains in Upstate New York, Amen & Goodbye is the fruits of variation and reaction. Yeasayer knuckled down in the isolated farm studio, only to have a good portion of work lost to a leaking control room during stormy weather. What could be salvaged returned to New York with the band, and was reworked with Joey Waronker (R.E.M., Beck).
The final product is unmistakably Yeasayer. It’s quirky and experimental without losing sight of the end goal. The album is full of clever, catchy pop songs: ‘Silly Me’ and ‘Dead Sea Scrolls’ are a testament to the band’s ability to harmoniously weave Western synthpop with what could be simply described as world music elements.
Yeah, it’s arty – even the album cover screams pretentiousness. But underneath the fluff lies a solid and wonderfully produced pop record.
Yeasayer’sAmen & Goodbyeis released on Mute and available through Create/Control.
