Albums seldom take the form of a holistic work—from the cover art to the music—in a culture geared toward chart-topping singles. This idea of a whole product at times proves detrimental if treated as an end in itself. Real Estate guitarist Matt Mondanile’s solo project Ducktails, for instance, delivers a fourth studio album with a clear focus on unity of the LP without the benefits that often accompany such strategies. In spite of solid production and an aura best described as pleasant, The Flower Lane falls short of memorable.
The uniformity gone wrong is revealed in the cover art, a metaphor for the album as a whole. Black and white patterned tiles meet at a corner, just as effortless indie pop merges with 80s funk and a sprinkling of electronic elements within an ethereal, psychedelic atmosphere, all wrapped in senseless lyrical repetition and rhymes for the sake of rhyming.
Even so, words do not fail Mondanile at the start of each song. “Ivy Covered House” and “The Flower Lane” begin with sentimental displays verging on true emotion, though the lyrics launch into broken record-style reiteration that drags the instrumentation along for the ride. This pattern continues throughout The Flower Lane, though it gradually becomes less noticeable and intrusive as the album develops.
The appealing instrumentation of the LP, however, manages to compensate somewhat for the bland lyrics. Reverberant synthesized saxophone interludes on tracks like “Under Cover” blend well with bouncing cymbals, keyboard arpeggios, and leisurely guitar solos, creating much-needed breathing room between the cyclical verses.
“International Date Line” emerges as a particularly clear instance of such salvaging. Vocals are altogether absent from the track, which contains heavily mixed, moderately crunchy rhythmic guitar riffs in front of a thin wall of sound that makes up the percussive element.
The not quite hypnotic, agreeable nature of “International Date Line” fully encompasses the effect of The Flower Lane; to become completely enjoyable, Mondanile’s smooth whispers must be allowed to blend in with the remainder of the album’s instruments. The resulting simply satisfying mix is best suited for the likes of a Starbucks, ultimately fading from memory as a more promising record plays over the coffee shop audio system.
Voice’s Choices: “Under Cover,” “Letter Of Intent”
