Gold-Bears / Are You Falling In Love?

Slumberland

Gold-Bears formed in 2010 when Jeremy Underwood recruited a few friends to play songs he’d stockpiled since the demise of his former band, Plastic Mastery (555 Recordings / Magic Marker Records). The group quickly released a smashing 7-inch on Magic Marker, recalling the immediacy and urgency of Boyracer or The Wedding Present melded with the pop sensibilities of Slumberland contemporaries like Summer Cats and The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. They branched out a bit on their next release (a four-song 7-inch on Miami-based indie pop imprint Cloudberry Records) by stripping away some of the fuzz on one song, and adding drone elements à la the Microphones to another, while still maintaining their indie punk roots. After hibernating in their home studio for the winter, Gold-Bears have emerged with Are You Falling in Love?, a further expansion of the band’s sound. This eleven-song collection of frenzied crash-pop, strummy ballads and syncopated dirges is one of the most dynamic indie pop records of recent memory. In just over 33 minutes, Gold-Bears funnel jangle-noise-pop soundscapes through the energy of Titus Andronicus’ punk anthems, and even offer a few reprieves on slower tunes that showcase Underwood’s more sincere vocals. The album kicks off with “Record Store,” a track so full of infectious spirit that it seems as though the rhythm section can hardly keep up. “Record Store” segues into “All Those Years,” one of the catchiest, poppiest songs in their repertoire. From the initial “ba ba ba” through to the sugary sweet harmonies provided by Kristine Capua (Very Truly Yours), this song will stick in your head for days. Smack dab in the middle of the album is the shoegazey title track, replete with a thumping bass line, calculated drumming,  guitars that sound like airplanes and bees and lush violins. Toward the end of the album is “Xmas Song,” a track about the insecurities of love set to the tune of a pop classic, rife with feedback and fuzz that’ll fit nicely on a mixtape following This Poison! or Neutral Milk Hotel, depending on who you’re trying to impress. These eleven songs are brimming with gentle majesty and fervent energy. Whether you follow the stories in the lyrics of the songs or bop around your room to the jangly guitars, this album will surely remain on your turntable for months. Because after all, you have, indeed, fallen in love… with Gold-Bears.

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