Portugal The Man - Church Mouth

Genre rock Publisher Fearless Records External Links Official Portugal The Man Website Official Fearless Records

It's hard for me to picture Portugal. The Man rocking the green hills of Alaska.

Church Mouth explodes out of the gates - boom - mixing part grinding-guitar/drum attack with swinging hooks and bouncing drums. Then it dies down and starts up again. When the pace is quick and the rock is the most dense I'm reminded of Pleasure Forever (sans goth). Oh, and some guy named Jack White. "Telling Tellers Tell Me" Starts out pleasantly enough, only to hook with frustrating bullhorn Kid Rock vocals. This much hard rock tends to wear me out rather quickly, and the band tries to address that, however briefly. "My Mind" provides a welcome relief with it's acoustic guitar intro and light rhythms. But the track quickly dissolves into humdrum pop-rock, due mostly to its lackluster chorus. "Oh Lord" is the standout track here. Interesting tempo changes and even a toy piano help to relax the band a little. Drums lumber, bringing the song to a moody shuffle. "Bellies are Full" smells like White Stripes teen spirit right down to the slide guitar and signature Meg White minimalism. Regardless, Portugal. The Man play the style with finesse. "Children" is, um, "Heard it Through the Grapevine". Some nice things happen here though – little whispers of slide guitar and tense calms help to make the track more dynamic. I'm reminded of the South, where one goes "Down to the river 'cause I don't believe in medicine". "Bottom" seems to mimic the structure of the previous song, down to the quiet before the unnecessarily epic chorus. The lyrics don't tread any new ground here, "I know, all I ever need is you". "Sleeping Sleepers Sleep", besides being a fucking radical title, starts off with a gloomy piano, all dirge and soap and tension, but soon the drums pick up and the track takes off - only - to slow down again. The album seems to benefit when the band drives at full force and keeps a clear pace. "And I walk 'til my legs are broken", sings Gourley, alongside some cleverly inserted backwards walking guitar. The song ends with a hea(drum)rtbeat that would have finished the album nicely.

But the band was apparently not content, and in comes "Sun Brother", a shell of a song that should have been inserted (complete) into the middle of the album instead. It ends just under the two minute mark with a fade-out and the same pulsing heartbeat, making me wonder just what the hell is the point? Maybe I am too serious. This is tried-and-true hard rock, and Portugal. The Man don't seem interested in pushing boundaries. Regardless, Church Mouth is definitely worth a listen if you're a fan of good old American rock (Alaska).