CD Review
Copeland
You Are My Sunshine
By Diana Galban
Copeland is a band you wouldn’t have found on my iPod a couple of months back. Their most recent release, You Are My Sunshine, changed that very quickly.
My style has a more Circa Survive feel, a little bit of Dinosaur Jr., and definitely some Neutral Milk Hotel. I’ve never been into these happy bands with jolly melodies (aside from Jack’s Mannequin), so how You Are My Sunshine got into my hands and earned my undivided attention may remain a mystery.
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"Should You Return" is the first track of the record, setting the atmosphere for the entire album. Aaron Marsh’s sweet welcoming voice accompanied only by a distant piano made me wonder why I had never given them a listen. "The Grey Man" follows with an entirely different structure both musically and vocally from its predecessor.
The parallel sounds of the loud drums to Marsh’s harmonizing fit perfectly.
Up until the fifth track, the lyrical structure of this record had surprised me, but "The Day I Lost My Voice" is the most intricate lyrically on the record.
By the third track, "Chin Up" I was convinced Copeland wasn’t such a happy band. The vocal range from high to low in the same verse makes this song. And the lyrics meaningful, woven into a sweet melody: "Back to where we started /losing who we were/ everybody knows that /you’d break your neck to keep your chin up."
"Good Morning Fire Eater" and "To Be Happy Now" sit at the middle of the record, with very different styles working in magical ways.
Up until the fifth track, the lyrical structure of this record had surprised me, but "The Day I Lost My Voice (The Suitcase Song)" is the most intricate lyrically on the record. The song features female vocals from Rae Cassidy Klagstad, whose distinctive and rather deep vocals complement Marsh’s delicate and graceful voice.
"What Do I Know?" is probably my favorite off this record. I like to pretend my squeaky little girl voice matches that of Aaron Marsh perfectly and I vocalize along in pure delusion.
The record ends on with the 10-minute "Not So Tough Found Out," which features Klagstad vocals once again. The track begins with a strange but very subtle electric noise, leading into the soft piano chords that are signature in this album. Though a grand finale is to be expected, the track remains tasteful in true fashion along with an Explosions in the Skylike and unexpected instrumental session 6 minutes into the song.
After being delighted song after song in You Are My Sunshine, Copeland might have just added one more fan to their following. And surprisingly, how I fell in love with this record might not be such a mystery after all.
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