When it comes to breaking up, the world of indie rock usually responds like the rest of us. Recall Marie de Salle in High Fidelity telling the lonely Rob Gordon, played by John Cusack, about dividing a sizable record collection with her ex after a break up. No tears—it’s the business of leaving old lovers, and soon Gordon and de Salle are having a post-coital cigarette.
Apparently, no one told Kelly Crisp and Ivan Howard of Chapel Hill’s The Rosebuds about this script.
The couple formed the band shortly after marrying; they are now divorced, and Loud Planes Fly Low is the first music they have released since the split. Understandably, one finds the band at the intersection of melancholy and cautious energy. Loud Planes is doubtless the darkest work yet by a group known for its brand of joyous indie pop, but the work is no less compelling for it.
Howard and Crisp alternate vocal duties on the record, symbolic of a musical cohesion that extends beyond the fracas of love in the real world. On “Limitless Arms,” Howard croons “And I feel illusion now/For the last time” as a gorgeous violin melody unwinds in the background. Crisp gets all Natalie Merchant on “Come Visit Me,” a rhythmic beauty with a rich palette of instrumentation chugging alongside her restrained voice. On “Without a Focus,” Howard sums up his new reality: “I don’t know how I am supposed to feel.”
The record is no masterstroke, but The Rosebuds haven’t lost their touch either. New experiences await: The band will open for Bon Iver until August. The end-of-romance storyline will provide fodder for fans, sure—but the beautiful music will make arriving early to the show a necessity.
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