In 2009 mewithoutYou successfully tried their hand at indie folk rock with It’s All Crazy! It’s All False! It’s All A Dream! It’s Alright!, and we last saw the Philadelphia band in 2012, when they built upon that sound and infused it with some alternative rock elements for the intricate narrative experience that was their fifth full length album, Ten Stories. Three years and a change of record label later, they’re back with perhaps their most complete effort yet.
Musically Pale Horses is situated in familiar territory for the band, as this time around they have made a triumphant return to the rawer post-hardcore influenced sound reminiscent of their earlier work. Distorted and reverb laden guitars make up much of this albums sound and are prevalent throughout the album with tracks such as ‘Watermelon Ascot’ and ‘Mexican War Streets’ being instant throwbacks.
The same could also be said about the lyrical content of the album, with vocalist Aaron Weiss dropping the idea of a single continuous theme for the record and instead writing about various subjects; often baring all to the listener with his complex and personal lyrics. He uses his voice like an instrument, varying from a soft coo to a passionate and intense scream, conveying his thoughts and feelings via various rhyme patterns and poetic ramblings.
This album also displays the ever improving song-writing ability of the band. In some instances of their previous work, songs could feel a little incoherent, and although mewithoutYou’s reluctance to conform to more mainstream song structures is something to be commended, there’s a fine line between getting it right and getting wrong. More times than not they got the execution right, however when they didn’t the song would end up feeling like an incomplete mishmash of ideas, however this is something that cannot be said for this album.
The opening and closing songs bookend the album perfectly; ‘Pale Horse’ is a melancholic soundscape with ambient guitars and anthemic guitars, whilst ‘Rainbow Signs’ starts off in a similar vein before the ambience turns into pounding guitar chords dripping in grit. Each track is built up expertly with tempo changes and new layers constantly being added here and there; ‘D-Minor’ is all dancing guitars before the pace quickens and, the track steamrollers to the crescendo where upon it mellows into a reverb coated fade. ‘Red Cow’ starts off as a moody and brooding song with a steady drum beat and a soft vocal. If a song could be a person, you imagine this one pacing back and forth. Then sure enough, the track explodes, heavy guitar chords caked in distortion pound away, and like an animal backed into the corner, Weiss’ in your face vocal grabs the listener by the scruff of the neck. Despite the venture back to a rawer sounding album there are some more delicate moments on the album with both ‘Dorothy’, a subdued track made up by subtle keys and guitars, and ‘Magic Lantern Days’, a dreamy acoustic led ballad that you could well imagine being on a Coldplay record.
Through combining the raw core that was at the centre of some of their earlier material with aspects of soundscape that they explored in more recent times, mewithoutYou have been able to seamlessly craft together a collection of songs that represent the very best of what this band has to offer. In the process they’ve been left with their most refined and accomplished album to date.
Words by Briar Bradshaw