Record Review: Brown Recluse

by | Mar 28, 2011 | Reviews

Brown Recluse
Evening Tapestry
Philadelphia, PA

“Blissful and syrupy magic that is actually listenable”

Since the release of their Soft Skin EP in 2009, Brown Recluse’s music has taken on a more peachy and delightful rhythm. But there’s still that lingering dream-like haze of springy-pop drowsiness, drawing from the band’s obvious Zombies and Beach Boys influences.

Evening Tapestry opens with tracks like “Impressions of a City Morning” and “Summer Showers,” which are all organized around a bouncy and penetrable aesthetic that is, quite simply, remarkably joyful (just imagine yourself on a merry-go-round joy ride with your closest friends on a cloudless beach). The album then stretches into tracks like “Monday Moon” and “Paisley Tears,” giving off a more bizarre and haunting vibe. That’s not to call it depressing, though. Timothy Meskers’ radiant and unworried vocals consistently glimmer into moments of drifty euphoria. The light and seductive surf-rock guitar patches in the background are a bonus.

Brown Recluse is a band that seems to be stuck in the age of ’60s psychedelic indie-pop and rock & roll fever, which is a good thing. So, if you’re looking for a soundtrack to document the blissful and syrupy magic of a dazed-out summer of joy, Evening Tapestry is an album that welcomes sunshine. (Slumberland Records)

Recorded and produced by Mark Saddlemire at Sound in the Round Studios, Philadelphia // Additional mixing and assistance by Timothy Meskers and Brian McTear

–Vanna Le

myspace.com/brownreclusesings