The Seduction of Kansas - Priests: Review

Priests

are a D.C. post-punk band that broke through last year with their debut album Nothing Feels Natural garnering praise from some indie fans and establishing a space for the group in the indie music environment.

Review By Lavender:

When I heard the sounds of Priests last year on their debut album it was clear to see that they had something here going for them. Their DIY aesthetic and willingness to experiment with their sound was something special but it didn't translate into much coherent songwriting as Nothing Feels Natural came off as closer to a rehearsal tape than a debut album. But looking to the future I had a feeling Priests would improve and maybe even drop some essential indie material and while they have certainly improved, there are still some big steps to take. 

There are two big takeaways from this album that are obvious in pretty much every song. The good thing to take away is that the bands lyrics are nearly always on point, whether their talking about youth, politics or expression they refuse to shy away from anything and drop as much hilarious mockery as they do poignant observation. The takeaway that is unfortunately much more impactful across this project is that Priests cannot write a good chorus upwards of 80% of the time, and some decent songs on this album are crushed by it. 

Jesus' Son the opening track is a prime example as the hook is boring before it''s even over the first time and it kills what little momentum an already boring track had going for it each time it comes around. I'm Clean is one of the weakest moments on the project as not only does it have an awful non-chorus but it's also one of the only songs where the lyrics come up as big question marks, if you're reading through this project it may be better just to skip this one. 68 Screen and Carol later on share basically the exact same complaint of an already hard to sit through song being made infinitely worse by a lifeless hook that couldn't possibly get stuck in anyone's head and more often than not contains random repetition of patterns of words until the songs mix goes straight up abhorrent. 

But as I said there is a lot of potential behind this band and even more so than on their debut, some of it shines here. The title track The Seduction Of Kansas has some fantastic politically charged lyrics and besides needing a much better chorus, finds ways to be interesting with some excellent guitar work and great vocal textures and effects. Ice Cream is a surprisingly catchy tune with great shouted supporting vocals and great driving drums, the Sonic Youth influence is incredibly clear here but the song is good regardless. And the following track Good Time Charlie is also a decent track that dabbles in surf rock and it's explosion of instrumentation on the hook is one of my favorite moments on the entire album. 

YouTube Sartre is a song I hoped I would like more lyrically and instrumentally, it features some great sounding guitar wails but they never really go anywhere and the song seems to have no structure whatsoever carrying through a disjointed series of babblings that takes me completely out of the tune. And the final track Texas Instruments is a very tame way to go out with a both generic and underwhelming cut that just needs a jolt of energy to help the album go out on a high note instead of just fizzling out like it does. 

But even given this there are still some memorable moments remaining. Not Perceived and Control Freak come back to back in this album and while both have major chorus issues they also come with highlights. Not Perceived is a lowkey track but one that is a very well paced build and by the time you reach the end all the driving energy it's built up becomes worth it. And Control Freak has some explosive drumming and intoxicating verse vocals that could have been fantastic if paired with a good hook. 

So clearly for Priests songwriting is an issue that's holding them back in a big way, but they improved from their first album to their second and I anticipate them continuing to get better as time goes on. I wouldn't say I liked this album but there was enough good moments throughout it to comfortably leave me wanting more from and band and I will be back to review their next project. 4/10

For more indie rock check out my review of Xiu Xiu's Girl With A Basket Of Fruit here.