REVIEW: The Drums’ “Abysmal Thoughts”

A welcome return to The Drums’ melancholy-streaked pop finesse.

the-drums-abysmal-thoughtsThe Drums, Abysmal Thoughts (Anti-)

Though the somewhat unconventional structures of songs like the title track and “Shoot the Sun Down” bear some of the experimental strains of their last record Magic Mountain, the Drums’ Abysmal Thoughts — a one-man-band effort by frontman Jonny Pierce, who wrote and played everything here — is a welcome return to the melancholy-streaked pop finesse of their previous records. Despite a couple of slight songs among the dozen tracks, there are at least four future greatest hits here, and even growers like the saxy “Your Tenderness” get under your skin and stick.

8/10

Trial Track: “I’ll Fight for Your Life”