The debut album from Youngtree & the Blooms, Musical Chairs, is a practice in subverting expectations. You might listen to the opening song, “Hilltops of Blowing Heather,” and think you know what to expect from the rest of the album. It’s a peaceful, reminiscent track that settles somewhere neatly between folk and country. It hits many of the ticks you’d expect.
In fact, this continues for the first half of the album. The first half of this album is pretty traditional to the genre – lazy, relaxing folk-country with acoustic guitar and that classic country twang.
That’s not a bad thing, however.
With the exception of the upbeat “Dirt Party,” all of the songs are dreamy and peaceful. This only adds to the building expectations for the rest of this album. It quite literally lulls you into a false sense of security.
“She Found Me” completely shatters the mould that the album has set up thus far, which is why it’s probably the most interesting song on the album. Cool, stilted harmonies and the surprising use of synth combine into a refreshing change of pace. It’s unique enough to the previous tracks that it forces you to a double take, to reevaluate your entire listening experience.
The following song, “Why Didn’t You?” returns back to the classic country theme, but it keeps some of the more experimental backing that was introduced in the previous track.
It would seem that the second half of the album is, in general, devoted more to mixing things up, whether that’s by adding a bluesy mood in “Cornfields” or kicking things into overdrive in “Ten Million Ways To Decay.”
Through stylistic differences, a single thread ties this album together, and that’s the theme of death. The lyrics of each song grasp at some sort of understanding of mortality. The mood through which this is done ranges from lighthearted (“Ten Million Ways to Decay”) to heartrendingly sombre (“Why Didn’t You?”). This search for understanding likely contributes to the varying styles present on this album. Each song serves to ask a different question, explore a different emotion, using lyrical and stylistic differences as a conduit.
This trend carries right through into the closing track, “Living in the Dark.” The track opens with ambient sound that feels like something straight out of a creaking, haunted house. A sort of howl carries throughout the song, accompanied by crooning vocals and a bright tinkling of piano. It’s a sombre, spooky ending for the album that truly leaves a lasting impression.