Light Pours Through
Artist: Mack, The Coffee Man
Label: Burnt Toast Vinyl
Time: 56:40 12 Tracks
Mack, The Coffee Man must be drinking de-caf. This album lacks all
the jitters, on the edge, biting-your-fingernails hyperactivity that normally
comes from caffeine. Instead, when you hear them, you are listening to
a relaxed indie rock album with a touch of emo -- stirred, not shaken.
The result is a good album.
I have heard of this band before because they have played with other
great indie rock groups like Pedro the Lion and Joe Christmas, so I was
expecting something similar. But their sound is all their own, which is
good because familiarity breeds contempt.
"Light Pours Through" is actually two of their EPs together on one
disc. It's a split CD, and each part has its own sound (the first part
is more emotional).
Their sound package is totally unique. It's minimalistic indie rock
with occasional guitar solos and a whiny, wispy lead voice. The three guys
play together real tight and are blended real well. Their melodies are
bittersweet, and the singing causes depression... but a good kind of depression.
At times you think you are listening to Bono from U2 sing, but then as
it goes on you hear the "whine" in his voice and remember that this is
Mack, the Coffee Man.
There were a few songs on the album that were annoying. I thought
the songs didn't have much of a direction and repeated the melody too much,
but that was only on two songs. As for the rest, they were good. There
was also an ever-present sense that these guys listen to '80s music a whole
lot. I really felt that influence in the music and singing.
The best song on the first split, "Light Pours Through," is "Years."
This song has a sad beginning, middle, and end, but it sounds so right.
The guitar solo at the end took me back a few years to the age of
big hair, Atari, and Glam, when Reagan was in office and the only rock
I heard was from my older brother's tape case. It ends the song on a killer
groove, and I put my CD player on repeat for awhile after I heard it.
The best song on the second split and my favorite overall was "Estella."
I liked this song a lot. It's really up-tempo and sounds a whole lot like
Robert Smith and Bono singing at the same time. I'm not saying that this
group copies others, just that they will bring those other groups to mind
when you hear them. They really bust out with the indie rock style on this
song, and it's a song worth hearing on an album worth getting.
I think Mack the Coffee Man is a good, emotional, dark indie group,
and I recommend them to those who like that style. But I need to give you
a word of advice: Don't listen to the album after a hard break up, because
it might drive you to drinking...espresso.
Justin W. Jones
