Ambling Alp Aptly Awesome

Review of Yeasayer’s “Ambling Alp”

Yeasayer’s newest single “Ambling Alp” leads the listener into a great pop song with about twenty seconds of percussive John Cage-inspired sounds. A marimba rattles through a scale, bubbling water percolates. Slowly an organ builds and the song explodes with a mechanized drum beat, a distinct snare and an extra drummer just for hi-hat work. Think “The Boxer” by Simon and Garfunkel mixed with “Welcome to the Machine” by Pink Floyd. Industrial but not boring or repetitive, Ambling Alp snaps your body with jolting ups and downs.
Immediate thoughts of pop songs from the 80′s by Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins resonate with the listener. However, the songwriting surpasses the works by those artists with a projected mood that is heartfelt and serious. Chris Keating’s vocals are strong but he allows them to get slightly breathy as he approaches the end of a line. As the chorus begins, a bright and delayed guitar adds an upstroke which creates a subtle reggae rhythm. The lyrics in the chorus: “Stick up for yourself, son/ Nevermind what anybody else done,” struck me as vague and equally appropriate. The first is an obvious statement but the second is more specific, informing the listener on how to accomplish the previous via nonconformity. Overall, a very uplifting and honest sentiment expressed wonderfully through a very rhythmic song.

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http://www.amblingalp.com/store.php