Rogue Wave's second album, "Descended Like Vultures," is nothing more than solid melodic pop-rock. The band isn't spectacular or ingenious, but it's worth a listen.
The album will be released Tuesday. "Descended Like Vultures" has a lot to live up to because Rogue Wave's debut, "Out of the Shadows," received quite a bit of buzz and acclaim from critics last year. Rogue Wave is a little bit The Shins, a little bit Yo La Tengo and a little bit louder Grandaddy.
The band has a Death Cab for Cutie thing going with soft vocals set to great melodies and some barely-there electronic mixed in. It knows how to be subtle, yet strong. All the songs have catchy hooks and none are too much like the one before it, making the album interesting as a whole. There's only one song that might be worth skipping: "California," yet another slow-paced song devoted to Americans' favorite western state. Why does every band feel the need to sing about California? The song does have a cool, folksy rhythm, though.
"Bird on a Wire," the first track, is a pretty, smooth indie-pop song with a memorable hook. The rest of the album follows this trend. Every song is calm with low-key vocals. All the beats are almost hypnotic; they have a certain rhythm to reel in listeners.
"Publish My Love" has strange lyrics with vocals that vary in range throughout the song: "Wait there/just enough to see you smile/I mixed up the distance of the miracle mile/you could never publish my love ? the sun beats/down upon the brain of confusion/my house is much better if the roof is connected/you can never publish my love."
One of the best songs on the album is "Catform." It's pure pop, but has haunting guitars and drums with Modest Mouse-like vocals. The song also uses an organ and viola. "10:1" is also a great song; it's the album's single. It's more upbeat and has an interesting array of instruments including a transistor radio, autoharp, chimes and a Wurlitzer electric piano creating a spacey sound.
"You" and "Temporary," the last two songs, are good ending tracks. They're both slower-paced and tranquil. "Temporary" is an acoustic track with twangy guitar and an accordion. Its style varies from the rest of the album, showing that Rogue Wave is able to provide diversity in its music.
