Y’know, when I was a kid, if you could score a solid record for $9, it was a deal. I mean, an album where you didn’t have skip any of the tracks, where the music was good enough to listen to multiple times . . . Hell, I was happy to get a copy of Aerosmith’s “Done With Mirrors” for just $7.99 at Soundtrack on 7th Avenue, and the only song I really liked on it was Shela. But nowadays, kids find an album like Falcon’s “Disappear” for just nine bucks at Bandcamp and buying it isn’t even a consideration. It’s too bad.
Brooklyn’s Falcon have a fascinating story: Two kids who started out by performing the songs written by their friend who was institutionalized at the age of 13, and who hasn’t written a song since. Their catalog has expanded since then, and Disappear, the band’s first proper album, is full of sings written by band frontman Neil Rosen after he saw the film, “Into the Wild.” And they have that kind of city-boy-meets-nature feel: Expansive ceilings, crowded basements, tight hooks and soaring synths. Much like the album cover, which features urban graffiti under a big, clear sky, all washed over with pale, yellow light.
The band is offering a pop single, Say Goodbye, below, for sample. And it’s a very good pop song. But I know my readers: You like something a little offbeat and different. So I’m also throwing “Key of Dreams” for your listening, sampling pleasure. It’s an instrumental with odd phrasing and a great sense of mood and atmosphere. I’m really, really digging these dudes.
This is a band on its way up. Catch them before a major label does, so you can say “I dug ’em when.”
And for Christ’s sake, spend just $10 a month on music. This is a good place to start.
