Album Reviews: PAPA – A Good Woman is Hard To Find
I don’t know about you, but it seems like all the summer jams are coming out around right now rather than at the beginning of the summer. Maybe it’s global warming that’s pushing all the good stuff towards August? Who knows. I do know that there weren’t too many good summer jams as of late… The radio leads you to songs that either sample Modest Mouse or are “sung” by a band named after some internet slang. Under the belly of the beast, there weren’t too many hot summer tracks in the indiesphere either. Foster the People blew up just like I expected them to. Mighty Clouds had a nice release. But there wasn’t anything that really summed up my past summer… until A Good Woman is Hard To Find landed in my lap.
PAPA, from LA, pulls from both the punk spectrum and the funk/soul of Motown. I don’t know about you, but for whatever reason soul music really puts me into that top-down sweat-it-out mood. The twist PAPA throws on the more-soul-than-punk sound really fills out that entire feeling for me.
Listen to two tracks off of the upcoming EP below!
PAPA: A Good Woman Is Hard To Find by Hit City USA
The Pros
It’s complete. Well built. Sturdy. Everything you want from an EP. The opening track of the EP, “Ain’t It So”, sets a fairly high standard of quality that PAPA seems to meet with every song. There is that crunchy electric guitar that is perfectly leveled, matched with the rhythm section that seems to fit perfectly as well. The piano in most songs is really what slays, as it is their prominent soul-sounding instrument. This album isn’t just on par… it’s an ace in the hole.
The song structuring for each track is fairly flawless as well. There is no drag at all. Smooth would be the best word to describe it. The listenability to this entire album might be one of the highest of the year.
As for the “punk”… that might shine through production quality for some. It’s fairly stripped down, with very light effects over the vocals and instruments. Subtly, it’s as straight forward as you’re going to get from an album like this. And that’s exactly what it should be. No need to doll it up with anything more than some limiters, a gate/comp, and some reverb tanks. This thing shines bright, and probably sounds amazingly similar live.
For those looking for comparisons… this really stands alone in my mind. The Gaslight Anthem comes close, but that’s much more punk and coarse compared to the fine soul PAPA produces. Mighty Clouds’ former modal included something that was part soul part rock, but it was more up in the air as far as what you were going to get from track to track. PAPA is much more defined.
The Cons
The very first thing that might throw you off is that voice. Darren Weiss, the vocals for PAPA, has the very voice that people would most likely see as rockabilly or punk. At a stretch, he could front a very convincing Talking Heads cover band. At a further stretch, he resonates a grittier Springsteen. And with all of those references… not once does “Motown” or “soul” or “funk” or any cast of Motown greats pop into mind. That’s not a con against his vocal ability, but more a con for people who aren’t as receptive to vocals. Especially when the vocals, in tone, sound out of place. Weiss has a great set of pipes, but when that twangy guitar and get-up-and-shout piano comes through, the last thing you’re thinking is “I hope Bruce Springsteen starts singing.”
For those seeking out anything more than punk-soul, then you might be out of luck. First of all, this is PAPA’s debut EP, and their only time to set a standard definition of themselves to the world. I am very glad that this EP wasn’t a slathering of everything they could potentially do… since that usually turns out awkward and confusing. This EP really shows what these guys are all about. For someone looking for something more… like how they can expand into more punk or even more variations of soul or funk, then you’ll have to wait for the LP. But, I do have an odd feeling that their LP (whenever that is coming out) will resonate more with the EP than with variations of their band’s ability. So you new listeners looking for a prototypical vishnu style band that can do anything at any time perfectly might have to wait a while.
The Verdict
Hands down, one of the better albums of the year. I don’t know if it has the wherewithal to take over the other albums nominated this year, but it should be mentioned in a class of elite albums. As a band, these guys smash it out of the water: from the drums to the vocals and everything in between, this is one of the best summer jams of the year (even though fall officially began a few days ago, I believe). This band has the potential to become that Foster the People-type band… but I have a feeling that PAPA is looking at life more in terms of the long haul, and not the one-and-done variety. I wouldn’t be surprised if we hear about PAPA a few months from now, maybe a year or two. Think of it like how The Black Keys progressed. Relatively unknown for a few years until Brothers last year, which exploded out of no where.
It would be a shame if you read this entire thing, listened to the teaser tracks, and didn’t want to pick up this album, which comes out on October 4th. I don’t know what to say to someone like that. I couldn’t speak more to PAPA’s superb talent, nor to their great debut EP, but one thing is for sure: be on the look out for PAPA in the future. I told you first.
