Silversun Pickups - Swoon

Silversun Pickups are an Indie Rock band out of Los Angeles, California. Their new album Swoon is a power-packed rock album reminiscent of the Smashing Pumpkins of the 90’s.

“There’s No Real Secrets This Year” is a catchy fast paced tune. At the end of the track it breaks into an ambient keyboard piece with light vocals over the top, which lead into the next track. “The Royal We” starts off light and gets a bit heavier at times, occasionally incorporating an eerie violin in the background while the guitars blare. “Growing Old Is Getting Old” breaks out with a solid bass line to usher in the lyrics about the undesirability of growing up “Suddenly / We decompose / But we're not alone.” Halfway through the song rips through and gets more intense in coming to terms with the inevitability of age: “And don't be afraid of the cold / Afraid of the cold / Afraid of the time / You've got no where to go but here.” “It’s Nice to Know You Work Alone” brings in a driving bass line to back a simple guitar riff and a drum beat that pave the way for a song seemingly about a failed relationship. The violin from “The Royal We” comes back for another appearance adding a little flavor at the end of the track. “Panic Switch” starts off strong and heavy, with tight drums and bass backing up a grungy guitar lead. The song keeps building in an anxious way into a spastic guitar solo in the end, followed by the repeated mantra “Waiting and fading and floating away.” “Draining” is one of the more mellow songs on the album. It incorporates a simple bass-line and light drumming backing a clean guitar part. The vocals really shine here, especially with the vocalist’s unique style of singing. “Sort Of” brings a frantic distorted bass-line, heavy drums, and very supportive organ like keyboard part. During the chorus a high-pitched guitar squeal accompanies the height of the vocals, and breaks free at the end for a melodic solo. “Substitution” comes through with that Smashing Pumpkins feel the band has. The song feels like throwback to the alt-rock of the 90’s. “Catch and Release” uses the front of fishing and very simple musical piece to tell the story of how to catch a lover: “Come and see / How the wind in / your hair will feel differently / Catch and release / The lure above.” “Surroundings (Or Spiraling)” is a solid ender for the album. It’s quite driving and pushes forward, and tapers off at the end with some reverb.