The Weepies - Hideaway

Genre indie-pop Publisher Nettwerk External Links The Weepies Website

Some bands, upon finding success, will release a follow up album that can seem to be a wild change of tack - the new outing by Panic At The Disco, to cite a recent example - while others will choose a smoother transition, an incremental evolution of their sound. Hideaway, the new album from The Weepies, falls firmly into the latter category. The band, primarily composed of married musicians Deb Talan and Steve Tannen, have created another collection of introspective and deeply personal songs. The only real difference from their label debut, Say I am You, is a more polished aesthetic and a fuller orchestration throughout. Their particular brand of pop-folk continues to be driven largely by acoustic guitar and the duo is often complemented on various songs by friends on a range of instruments (a little assistance on horns on "All This Beauty" and a string section on "Little Bird"). The entire album was recorded at the couple's home which accentuates the personal nature of this project. But, despite the seemingly simple template, The Weepies manage to construct a surprisingly deep sound that varies enough from track to track to avoid becoming redundant.

As on Say I am You, Deb and Steve trade vocal duties on alternating songs, and impressively, the outings of each are equal in quality. Hideaway opens with Steve singing on "Can't Go Back Now," a track that sets the tone and themes of the rest of the album: Dwelling on loss, remembrance, and moving forward. This is followed by Deb's first vocal track, "Orbiting," an excellent example of how captivating and catchy this band can be, even on such a melancholy subject as abandonment (although it helps when it is wrapped in a pretty metaphor regarding the movement of celestial bodies). "Antarctica," at first glance a trite throwaway, but delivers a poignant message of what can be achieved by leaving on your own. The final track, "All This Beauty," is an up-tempo pop-folk song that serves well to close the album in a way that is redemptive and optimistic.

If there is fault to be found in Hideaway, it could be that it is too sincere. For what could be looked as a "break-up" CD, one would usually expect some kind of irony or at least a bit of passive aggression. On "All Good Things" the refrain refers to wishing nothing but good unto the hypothetical ex, all the while the narrator is dwelling on the loss (it might be possible to chalk this example up to the fact that it was co-written by Mandy Moore, but it is far from alone on the album). The one exception to this general rule is "How You Survived the War." Using battle as a metaphor for relationships (apt at times), the refrain "You give up like every time before / That is how you survived the war" seems to be a snide comment on a lovers lack of commitment."

All things considered, this is hard album to not let grow on you. Once again, The Weepies have created a subtly infectious collection of songs. So, whether you are wallowing in new loss or simply in a reminiscent mood, it makes for a very cathartic listen.