Telekinesis – Telekinesis! – Citizen Dick Album Review
Merge Records hasn’t played all of their cards this year, and a sneaky ace in the hole is about to drop on April 7th. Seattle’s Michael Lerner, aka Telekinesis, is a one-man pop/rock wrecking ball that clearly has a finely tuned and impeccably mixed album ready to hit the shelves. As Merge celebrates its 20th anniversary, they’ve been anything but reserved and CD has had plenty of time to put our ears to Telekinesis!, the debut effort that stomps, rocks, and pops from start to finish with alarming vivacity and endearing charm.
Recorded and mixed with the aid of Chris Walla (Death Cab), some side notes regarding the creation of the album are probably worth mentioning in this review. Essentially, Lerner composed much of the album himself, playing nearly every instrument on the recording, which was done in a one-shot-deal mode. Each track was given the one day treatment and whatever was left at the end of the day is what stuck. Interestingly, as I’ll explore further, it’s the urgent nature of one take recording that lends itself nicely to the overall aura and sound of this impressive debut.
Even upon initial run through, Telekinesis unwraps a blender full of energy, and only the best classic pop and rock conventions splatter the sonic canvas with enriching color. Conventional late 60’s and 70’s pop/rock flashbacks haven’t sounded so crisp and modern in awhile, and hook-laden choruses and arrangements burst outward from top to bottom. The overall liveliness of the record takes off by track two, with “Coast of Carolina,” with its fuzzy undertone, crashing cymbals and uniquely dubbed-in vocal delivery. The tone is set early and the pace, although it spans multiple decades, doesn’t let up until the last few notes of the journey.
One uniquely significant aspect of the album is that it doesn’t really hit a sonic peak, but instead, to put it bluntly, is consistently good. Every track plugs way with gigantic rock hooks and warm, repetitive lyricism. ”Look into the East” is dreamy and comforting in its retro coolness. Lerner’s synthesizer flourishes throughout the song and its central three-chord riff pummels more than it lulls. Tracks like this remind us that, at its core, this is a rock record and that Lerner has created an album with a 60’s and 70’s backdrop while being careful not to overly exploit one aspect or genre. ”Tokyo” is bouncy and frenetic and it races directly into the earphones and won’t go away. As the third track in the record, it begins another motif that consistently peppers the album, namely repetitive choruses and lyricism. This repetition is recognizant of older genres from surf-rock and even a tinge of 70’s disco, believe it or not. This works to create tone, but as a listener, it sears great pop/rock choruses into your brain. When I clean the house, I’m humming Telekinesis. When I roll to the store, I’m singing Telekinesis. If I had a dog to walk, I’d be dancing to Telekinesis. It only takes two run-throughs to lodge this candy sound in deep.
As previously mentioned, not only one decade is covered here. ”Awkward Kisser” is a straight up malt-shop sipping summer 1950’s tune placed perfectly in the middle of the album. It hearkens back to summer flings and good times. Lerner keeps one foot in the nostalgia bin here. Other stylistic variations are included in tracks like “Foreign Room” which dominates, at first, with some minor chord acoustic strumming and intimately emotional lyrics. Some classic “oh-oh’s” climb upward until the track become a blistering frenetic rock song. Bass pounds in and a jumpy pop anthem unfolds. Much of the album does hit the nostalgic vein, and the lyrics span motifs of traveling to far off lands and attachment to the people we love. Since each track is recorded for us in one take, there’s an emotional sincerity and urgency of energy in each song. We really wish more bands did it this way, as it makes Telekinesis! simply sing.
I suppose it’s fitting that as Merge turns twenty, we get an album that could have been dropped during any point in those twenty prolific years and still garner success. Telekinesis! has us excited here at Citizen Dick. It’s not necessarily an album that breaks new ground, but two distinct things should get you off your ass to pre-order or buy this record on April 7th: Michael Lerner is an amazingly talented do-it-all musician, and probably more importantly, there’s not one ill-advised track on the entire record. Enjoy “I Saw Lightning,” the closing track of the album. We’re pretty confident this will be a record you won’t drop out of your rotation for a long, long while.
Pre-Order Telekinesis! at Insound
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