Search - Julius Airwave :: Dragons Are the New Pink (Jewl)

Fantastic plastic funny missile

E. A Solinas | MD USA | 02/01/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

""Dragons are the New Pink." Hmm. Whatever that title means, anyway, it's in sync with the colorful, bright cover. The music, on the other hand, is far less whimsical than the title suggests -- it's pretty good indierock, framing some pleasantly inscrutable lyrics, and musical styles that range from lo-fi warbles to expansive pop-rock.



After an interlude of tinkly pop and gentle acoustic strums, the Julius Airwave kicks into some midtempo indie-rock -- heavy on the echoing bass, bouncy guitar and percussion. "Tickle Me Penguin" skyrockets into entirely different turf, with an ever-rising indie-rock melody that is only grounded by a growly bassline. It's a big, boisterous song that is plenty of fun.



At the halfway point, all bets are off -- there's no rhyme of reason for what they do, but at least it's a good listen while they do it. Julius Airwave happily veers into acoustic folk, some eerie growly pop, and the slow, strange "Pink Fingernails." Too bad they didn't stop at the soaring rock song "Underneath the Weight," because the finale is a disaster of tinny drumming and tortured yowls.



A lot of bands go through "phases" where they try out new stuff. The Julius Airwave cuts to the chase, and just includes virtually every kind of indie rock in existance -- emo, ballads, folk, regular rock with a few strains of punk, and lo-fi warbles. So the album feels, not like a cohesive whole, but like a band trying out styles to see what fits and what doesn't.



Not that there's anything wrong with that, of course. It's an entertaining listen as a whole, even when the songs are uneven. It's a bit of a shock to get the simplstic acoustic-guitar ballad "Broken Tusk" wedged between two solid, multilayered rock songs. The unusual, more emotional "Catherine" has a radically different tone.



If winged bells on the cover give the impression of whimsy, then the bass/guitar/drum combos are remarkably grounded. But a certain dreaminess is kept in the music, courtesy of Rick Colado's slightly bizarre songwriting. "Then you hold the sun inside your face when you smile/the whole world begins to shine like a golden mystery."



The Julius Airwave flies all over the place with their debut "Dragons Are The New Pink," but fail to settle anywhere for long. Though a bit spotty because of the myriad musical styles, it has promise and quite a bit of exploratory talent."