Bells
Coloring in the Sun
Post rock has always felt like a soundtrack to specific scenes in the movie of my life. Whether I'm traveling, watching mile markers and gas stations pass by as a passenger, or crossing dotted white lines and counting exits as the pilot, post rock always seems like it was composed just for me.
Sure, I'm selfish and self centered and I think you were all put here for my own amusement, but you're just as selfish with those Junior Mints and Reddit karma. You just aren't writing this particular thing thing bro.
Bells is one of the bands that I came across during the height of my fascination with post rock. Along with This Patch of Sky, and If These Trees Could Talk, and And So I Watch You From Afar, and Battles, I am a complete wuss for bands that paint a broad picture and let me fill in the details and write the dialoge.
Seeing as I hadn't heard from Bells in a number of years, and it's obvious from the amount of reviews I've written since November 2016, I haven't realy been looking outside of my immediate surroundings for new musical inspiration, I almost feel like we both just got sucked in by life.
But maybe because music needs me just as much as I need music, Bells reached out to ME to tell me about their new album, Coloring In the Sun. This wasn't like a press pitch or mass email blast, this was an actual frickin' email asking me to listen to their new jams in a bunch of years, as they had "all got married, adopted kids, birthed kids, got dogs, bought houses, almost failed some businesses, had some parents break up, lots of juicy life drama," but were back.
All of that sounds especially true of humans exiting the ages of their youth, back when merely making it to the weekend was a goal. That time back where instead of trying to keep your head above crippling anxiety related to relationship or work stress, or financial hardships, or simply the horrible ass political climate, you had goals based on tangible things. Like when you were saving money to purchase an instrument, or concert tickets, or saving for beer money for a trip with friends, those preparations could be measured in dollars, or weeks until X happens.
But now we're here. We're responsible. We're responsible, not just for our own headspace, but the future headspaces of spouses, and children, and pets.
Coloring In the Sun from Bells plays out like the aforementioned movie with the aforementioned stress, but more specifically the movie's quick snapshot montage where six years of life is condensed into a single side of a spinning black vinyl circle. The first half of the album is eerie, introspective, and contemplative, and the second half is (to reference my dude Matthew Modine again) Vision Quest as fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu.
Tracks like "Tempered Mass" and "After Silhouette" are perfect getting off your ass and chasing that damn dream tracks, while tracks like "You Are" and "Noosphere" take the staring off into the distance shit you do and make it look galdarn romantic.
I'm completely enamored with how incredibly mature this albums sounds after all these years, not just because I've done a little maturing of my own since the last time I heard new Bells, but because it inspired me to write about music for the first time in an extremely long time. If the gorgeous ups and picturesque downs that Coloring in the Sun conveys over 11 songs is enough to get me off of my ass and talk about music how I used to, then I'm pretty sure it's enough of a treat for you to consider tossing it into your ear holes via streaming services or a vinyl purchase.
One last note, when "Number of Hours in Forever" starts, I get super goosies thinking it's the epitome of peace and beauty, but about half way through it, an army starts marching through my imagination. Moms are hiding their children, dads are trying to get a better look while not sticking their necks out too far, everyone is confused and terrified. BUT THEN THIS GALDARN SYNTH STARTS IN AND ALL OF A SHITS EVERYONE REALIZES THE ARMY MARCHING IS OUR BOYS RETURNING HOME, WE JUST HAVEN'T SEEN THESE DUDES SINCE BEFORE THEY HAD FACIAL HAIRS AND LOOK SO DAMN VICTORIOUS.
Damn I missed me some Bells.