Manchester Orchestra Frightened Rabbit Grouplove

POZ Review: Manchester Orchestra, Frightened Rabbit, Grouplove - Collaborative Split 12”

Andy Hull is an exceptional songwriter, and what separates him from many of his just “good” peers is his ability to write in such a wide breadth of styles and levels of aggressiveness without losing any amount of proficiency or sincerity. In collaborating separately with Frightened Rabbit and Grouplove on this release, one can juxtapose the variety of music that Hull is adept at creating (not to undermine the obvious contributions of the collaborating bands and Mr. Hull’s bandmates in Manchester Orchestra).

The Manchester/Frightened Rabbit track, titled “Architect,” is actually a collaborative effort between only the primary songwriters of the respective bands (and a song completed without the two ever meeting one another in person). Almost impossibly, the song manages to be both sparse and lush. The sparseness comes from the skeletal instrumentation and lack of percussion, while the relentless fingerpicked acoustic guitar riff provides the momentum and drive that often lack from a guitar-and-voice-only approach. 

As for the vocals, well…I know I can be prone to hyperbolic statements, but the vocals on this track are breathtaking. Scott Hutchison’s throaty, consistent delivery meshes perfectly with Hull’s nasal, loud-to-quiet delivery until each individual singer is nearly indistinguishable. The melodies and harmonies are sad and evocative without being mopey or obvious, and the song doesn’t linger, ending in a tidy four minutes. The most impressive part of this track is its balance: between the two songwriters, between the aforementioned fullness and sparseness, and between poetic ambiguity versus meaninglessness in regards to lyrics, “Architect” manages to walk the proverbial tightrope. 

As implied in the introductory paragraph, the other song in question is something different entirely. Opposed to the two-man show that was “Architect,” “Make It to Me” is a boisterous little ditty, complete with note-dragging synth riffs, a variety of vocalists, and a perfect combination of Manchester’s indie rock prowess and Grouplove’s dance-infused goodness.

Positive vibes flow from this song from the very beginning, and though the lyrics could be construed as potentially macabre, the whole thing is just too danceable and too much damn fun to feel down.  I made the unfortunate mistake of reading user comments on SoundCloud as I listened to “Make It to Me” for the fourth or fifth time (we all know how productive reading user comments can be), and let me squash something here and now: there is no dubstep in this song; nothing of the sort, in fact. Look, I like the genre as much as the next guy, but it’s simply not applicable to this particular song. There are electronic beats and hooks, yes. So what? Stop being pretentious and enjoy yourself, for god’s sake.

As a matter of opinion, I prefer “Architect” over “Make It to Me;” this isn’t surprising, since I prefer Frightened Rabbit to Grouplove (and “I Can Feel a Hot One” to, say, “Tony the Tiger”). I mention this only because all of the press that I’ve read about this release is rather vague regarding whether it will indeed be just one release (as opposed to two separate records). I’ve seen different cover art for each track, leading me to believe these will separate releases. Moral is: if you’re pinching pennies, get Architect. If you can swing both tracks, they’re both certainly worth your time.