Pernice Brothers - Live A Little

by Chip Midnight

A return to lush-sounding pop for The Pernice Brothers

"Not since the band's debut, 'Overcome By Happiness,' have The Pernice Brothers recorded such a lush collection of orchestrated pop songs. "

When his musical career comes to an end, Joe Pernice is going to have a hell of a future as a writer. The scholarly, soft-spoken singer is well studied in literature and while his lyrics aren't of the storytelling variety (at least not in most cases), the poetic words roll off his tongue with ease.

The Pernice Brothers sixth album in just under 10 years (that's not counting the live album or the two releases Joe put out under different names) is a return to form for Joe, his brothers, and their friends. Not since the band's debut, 'Overcome By Happiness', have The Pernice Brothers recorded such a lush collection of orchestrated pop songs. That's not to say that the releases between the first and last were unorchestrated, but Pernice himself admits that those albums were a little less produced and didn't contain the full accompaniment of strings, horns, and keys that 'Live A Little' enjoy.

Taking cues from '60s and '70s pop bands such as the Left Banke, The Zombies, and Brian Wilson, 'Live A Little' opens with 'Automaton,' a bouncy little number with both a wicked (short) guitar solo as well as some Flamenco-style guitar work courtesy of longtime unofficial brother, Peyton Pinkerton.

'Cruelty To Animals' is as rich as a song as The Pernice Brothers have ever been known to write – piano, analog synthesizer and rich bass guitar work filling the song with steamy cup-of-coffee warmth and Pernice's lyrics shine. "I'm arrested by an aria brought from the country / Stuck in dumb amazement like a dog who's told to levitate / This smash number-one goes to her lover in the belfry / Singing like a bird in flames and headed for a window pane," Pernice sings in his calming voice.

The album closes with a fully fleshed-out cover of 'Grudge Fuck' by Pernice's old band, Scud Mountain Boys. Pernice has said that he always loved the song and felt that it was time to bring it back and give it an update. The differences between the two are subtle, the older version piano-driven with acoustic guitar and bass accompaniment. The new version is cleaned up a bit, a little less reliant on the piano with more focus on Pinkerton's guitar playing.

'Live A Little' is a rich musical experience and highly recommended for those who enjoy intelligently written pop music.

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