Loney, Dear
Loney, Noir
SubPop Records

Like a cute furry mogwai, Loney, Dear’s twilight pop songs come alive during those dark, lonely hours between midnight and the next morning.  Their SubPop debut, Loney, Noir, is practically a soundtrack for all relationship-induced insomnia around the world. 

Opener, ‘Sinister in a State of Hope’, fades in slowly with just a quiet keyboard and some unplugged guitar, however, through gradual increments, it expands into a living, breathing pop song that cleverly invades your subconscious.  By the time you notice the various horns and keys swirling about the background of the song, you will already have fallen victim to the bittersweet allure of its lyrics.  ‘Summer nights bring me cold,’ songwriter Emil Svanängen coos in his light, high pitched delivery, ‘All I want is a state of hope’.  Much of Loney, Noir’s ten songs operate with this kind of stealthiness.

Anyone who has spent an entire evening dissecting phone calls, picking apart pauses in speech, and obsessing incessantly over the opposite sex can find something to appreciate in Svanängen’s delicate songwriting.  On ‘I Am the Odd One’, a lonely organ floats innocently underneath as the song’s narrator apologizes repeatedly for ruining the good spirits of a prospective lover.  The next track, ‘I Could Stay’, is a melancholy look at leaving friends and family in pursuit of your own fortunes.  The record’s bouncy single, ‘I Am John’, is the quick worded account of a night spent running from ‘dogs’ and struggling to fulfill our promises of support and love.  Similar to David Bazan of Pedro the Lion, Svanängen is an economist with his words, preferring to use short, succinct verses when drawing emotion from the listener.

If the wee hours wear you down and leave you begging for something, anything to make those still moments come alive, put on Loney, Dear’s Loney, Noir and let the Swedish songwriter’s melancholy music confront and put your qualms to rest.

[mp3] Loney, Dear - I Am John
[stream] http://www.myspace.com/loneydear