Caught in the Carousel

Antlers

Burst Apart
French Kiss

Antlers

In 2009, indie pop act the Antlers put out their successful concept record Hospice that told the melodramatic story of an emotionally abusive marriage where the abusive partner was dying. Hospice on paper looks like an over-the-top concept that could have easily tripped over its own feet. However, the band constructed the story through a guitar-driven, noisy album that contained devastating, yet anthem-like lyrics and accompanying melodies. In present day 2011, The Antlers have returned with their follow up to Hospice, which takes an entirely different direction. The new record Burst Apart is a refined, minimalist take on the band’s somber sound as the group ditches most of the concept record flourishes of Hospice for a more straightforward and bleak timbre.

Sonically, Burst Apart sees The Antlers trading in cathartic noise for more ominous, spacious electronics. “Rolled Together” is a simple synth-driven piece where the sole sounds found on the song are comprised of distant and simple blues riffs, a continually played synth chord, lead singer Peter Silberman’s far-off-in-the mix howl, and a delayed drum rhythm. The song is vacuum-like as the synth builds tension without building up the tempo or amount of instruments. Tension seems to be what the Antlers were going for with the soundscapes on Burst Apart. The ambient and shimmering electronic work of “Hounds” is pierced by a slow burning trumpet part that only adds to the tense, sparse nature of the song’s composition. Silberman’s signature falsetto was used as a tool to add to the chaotic nature of Hospice’s most heartbreaking moments. On Burst Apart, his voice is used to aide the uneasy nature of the ambient synths. During “Parentheses,” Silberman’s falsetto is a razor as it grazes the tense sonic skin of the song’s muffled drums and eerie synthesizers. Burst Apart builds atmospheres by using a little and getting a lot out of what it uses.

The lyrics of the album follow the music’s lack of decadence by concisely summing up what Silberman is trying to say in as few lines as possible. Most of the songs feature basic you-and-me conversation excerpts for lyrics. There is a reoccurring transactional proposition of “if you do this, I’ll do that” on most of the songs. This seems to be Silberman calling for cease fires from arguments with a lover. For example, during the opener “I Don’t Want Love,” Silberman sings “keep your prison locked up and I will leave my gun at home,” in a plea to stop whatever problem is at hand. The “you walk away and I’ll walk away” theme is a straightforward summing up of the state that Silberman’s speakers are in. Metaphor use on the record is transparent and simple. The closer “Putting the Dog to Sleep” uses the heartache fuel of euthanizing a pet as an allegory for ending a relationship. The listener can easily catch on to what the figurative language is alluding to without swimming through too much analytical work. As opposed to the lengthy tales that were constructed with tons of narrative devices on Hospice, Burst Apart shows the Antlers taking on more of a research paper style take on lyric writing. The songs use straightforward statements that get to the point of what the lyrics are trying to say, without being overly simplistic.

Burst Apart has many of the signature heartbreaking feelings that made Hospice engaging, but this is a sleek set of songs that shows a band who once flourished in lavish, noisy music now making more reserved and subtle sounds.

—John Venanzi