For a few bars, “Turn the Beat Around” could be New Order. Or maybe something by Yaz. Or Herbie Hancock in the early ’80s.
Instead, the analog synthesizers of “Turn the Beat Around” kick off the Grownup Noise’s new album “Lonely Days.” Yes, the Boston band who you fell for because of its earthy, organic sound — lots of tender melodies powered by cello, piano and guitar — have spun toward Human League instrumentation. And the results are simple and sublime (and not just because the tender melodies remain).
“There are things I just can’t do on the keyboard so I had to live in that limitation,” singer/songwriter/new keyboardist Paul Hansen said. “Living under the limitations of what can you do, you can still be creative as hell. So many great artists have said that to me, ‘Just limit yourself and see what happens.’ ”
Hansen’s shift from guitar (he’s an ace on the six-string) to keys came out of radical changes in the band. Some members burned out, some couldn’t get visas renewed, and suddenly, not because of any band drama, Hansen found himself a solo act. One of the many ironies behind “Lonely Days” is that lamenting the loss of his bandmates made him want to write about being alone, being alone made him want to sit down at the piano, and then he started to love what he was writing.
“I was feeling down but I wanted to write songs and picking up the guitar had all these old associations,” Hansen said. “It wasn’t an angry move but I wanted everything to be different from top to bottom. It felt emotionally good to play a new instrument and I felt like there was a time to challenge myself creatively. Then I took the songs from piano to synth and it was like ‘holy (expletive).’ I felt like I was floating in space and it felt fun.”
“I Get It Now” starts like an electro club track but, instead of a booming beat breaking in, Hansen’s sweet voice sings “Strange days, they come at you like sad songs in the nude.” “Tracing Back” could have evolved into a disco jam if Hansen didn’t hold it tight, restraining it to the often-underrated midtempo (the Postal Service isn’t a bad analog to what he does throughout “Lonely Days”). His smart impulses from the past remain: Don’t crescendo at obvious moments, slow down when others would speed up, drop into a minor key when a major might be expected, let songs bloom but don’t let them grow feral.
Hansen’s main collaborators on the record were engineers and co-producers Max Weinstein and Dan Cardinal (Weinstein also played some drums and old bandmate Adam Sankowski played bass on a cut). For a group that spent most of its life as a quintet, the small cast feels surprisingly right for a set that covers personnel and personal changes — beyond the loss of his band, Hansen sings about his relationship and family.
“I would love (playing live) as a duo but if it grows a little bit I’m cool with that too,” Hansen said. “I just want to keep playing. If anything, through the sadness, even if nobody cares, I have to do this band, this album for myself.”
Listen to “Lonely Days” at thegrownupnoise.bandcamp.com. Check out the cool, dark animated video for the title track on YouTube.
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June 05, 2020 at 04:55PM
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Grownup Noise finds key to new sound - Boston Herald
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