Annuals/Sunfold
Wet Zoo
Canvasback/Terpsikhore
By Kevin Hakansson
The importance of inter-band chemistry can be argued until the two debaters are blue in the face. While good relationships are typically required for any sort of long-term success, there’ve been countless examples of dysfunctional bands that made it to the top (see family affairs like Oasis, The Black Crowes, Fleetwood Mac). It stands to reason, though, that the closer a band is, the more productive, creative, and prolific they can be. Annuals, who proudly declare what great friends they are, prove such a theory on Wet Zoo, an EP that defines the word “collective.”
Hailing from Raleigh, NC, it’s safe to describe Annuals as having a certain southern charm about them. Wet Zoo opens with “Sore,” whose opening is about as quaint as it gets. Adam Baker softy pines “The sorest the times, got your thoughts on my mind” on top of Kenny Florence’s beautiful acoustic guitar. This one opens up, in the middle though, with percussion and strings that provide a driving middle bridge before Baker takes over again. His emotional shouts prove his deft vocal versatility, and make this one an emotional roller coaster.
“Around Your Neck” certainly doesn’t mask the band’s geography either. Florence’s twangy, reverb-laden guitar drives what turns out to be a full out hootenanny. “Neck” really picks up steam toward the tail end, when the band adds in a clapping, shouting chorus to the mix. The celebratory gang claps, stops and screams till the last note’s been played, before yelling out a celebratory yelp.
Annuals’ final selection on the EP is “Just Stay In,” a song that’s a true proving ground for Baker’s mettle as a songwriter. Vocals and acoustic guitar drive this one, backed by a bevy of ambient instruments, though the focus can’t help but stay on Baker. His melodies are perfect, his vocal inflections are easily able to raise and lower the heartbeat of the listener. His vocal performances on Wet Zoo prove him an unrelenting master of emotions.
Closing out the EP with a couple introductory tunes is Sunfold. Now, one might wonder why I’ve yet to mention them. The answer is simple: they are, essentially, Annuals. So collective is Annuals, each of the band’s six members has a side project, comprised of the rest of the band, performing on different instruments.
Sunfold is Florence’s. This collaboration is unlike its brother band though. While Annuals maintain a folky, natural sound through much of their repertoire, Sunfold likes to rock. Florence has a perfect prog-rock voice. Each of the band’s two selections here, “Between the Worlds” and “Watering Pail” sound like Dave Grohl went back in time a few years and joined Yes or ELO. Both are pop rock songs that are decidedly musically ambitious, with running guitar lines, soaring keyboards, and punctuated percussion (provided largely in part by Baker, by the way).
It’s easy, and perhaps cliché to say that a band’s potential is limitless, but in Annuals‘ case, it may well be true. They’re all barely 21 years old, have a sophomore full-length (following 2006’s Be He Me) due in the fall on Canvasback, and what seems like a uniquely collaborative rapport, it would seem rather easy to predict great things for such a talented group. Here’s hoping they can live up to deservedly lofty expectations.
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