It’s been four years since Camera Obscura’s last release, My Maudlin Career (QRO review), yet what’s surprising is how little has changed with them. Unlike four prior full-lengths, the band didn’t change labels, staying at 4AD. More importantly, their sound is still rooted in fifties pop & sway. However, that sound is a lot more prevalent in today’s music scene, making it a bit harder for the Scottish group to stand out.
After the sub-thirty seconds “Intro”, all of the hallmarks of Camera Obscura are present on Desire Lines – the sunny relax of “This Is Love (Feels Alright)”, the indie-pop sway of “William’s Heart”, the excelling-at-niceness “New Year’s Resolution”. Once again the more active songs, such as “Do It Again”, are definitely more interesting than the slow & sweet ones, such as the following “Cri du Coeur”. Other than the tropicalia to “Every Weekday”, and maybe the guitar chords behind “I Missed Your Party” that sound like Tears For Fears’ “Everybody Wants To Rule the World”, it’s decidedly the Camera Obscura you know.
And if that’s the Camera Obscura you love, you’ll love Desire Lines. Their fifties pop-sway is an appealing – so appealing that a lot of other artists have started doing it these days. Some have opened for Camera Obscura, such as The Love Language (QRO spotlight on); most recently Camera Obscura themselves are opening for the similar-sounding She & Him (QRO live review) – even Tracyanne Campbell isn’t as appealing as the ‘adorkable’ Zooey Deschanel, despite Campbell’s charming Scottish humor live. But after their long absence, Camera Obscura might need to do something more in what’s now a much more crowded field.
Camera Obscura – Do It Again
