Unbunny
Snow Tires
Hidden Agenda
Jarid Del Deo’s abstruse wordplay (“You could say, you would say, I’m like all these decomposing leaves/Dark and heavy”) recalls the smug wryness of Clem Snide. His nasal warble, especially on “I Leave Stones Unturned,” has a subtle Neil Young feel. And then there’s the pervasive desperation of Snow Tires: “Don’t leave me with the shakes/Don’t hang me up to dry/If you knew what it takes, then you’d know I’m trying.”
Unbunny’s latest is a very timely offering. It is full of that gentle warmth that comes with a late-October afternoon in the Midwest, knowing full well that a long winter to come lurks somewhere on the other side of the amber-imbued dusk. Languorous guitars, spare piano lines and lugubrious lyrics are all delivered with a hushed whisper. Sepia images of things past are elicited throughout. While these things (mainly failed relationships) are not necessarily longed for, the present is pretty bleak, as the title track dolefully reiterates: “All the downtown windows are lit up for the holidays/Do they really think a string of colored lights is gonna rescue me?” This stuff is so damn palpable!
It’s getting darker earlier now, the landscape has become bare and the chill of a harsh, unrelenting winter is in the air. The only sensible thing to do is to curl up under the duvet and put on Snow Tires. It’ll be a while before you’re warm again – and I don’t just mean physically. But it’s nice to know that your pathos is in good company.
Unbunny: http://www.unbunny.com
