M.T. Bearington: Love Buttons

M.T. Bearington: Love Buttons
Despite being a small state, Connecticut reps a pretty heavy hitting music scene. From hardcore bands like Hatebreed to indie rock bands like Hot Rod Circuits and ska bands like Spring Heeled Jack U.S.A., Connecticut has always had a diverse music scene of nationally recognized acts. The latest band on the verge of breaking nationally is M.T. Bearington. Their latest album, Love Buttons hopes to be what puts them over the edge.
But from a state that is known mostly for their hardcore and ska scenes, M.T. Bearington is a little bit of an oddity. Their sound is about as far away from those two genres as possible. Their music adeptly mixes freak folk sentiments with psychedelic pop instrumentation to create something that is between scary, fun, and catchy.
I think of songs like “Dark Night” which features a jaunty drum line throughout and a group vocal chant of “let me go” repeated throughout the song. For some reason when I close my eyes and listen to the song, I see teddy bears skipping through a meadow singing it. Rarely do I see such images while listening to music but M.T. Bearington’s music is so odd that it just evokes them.
Other tracks are less upbeat like “Tub Wash The Oval Owl.” With slow hand claps and a gospel-choir-esque backing vocals, it sounds like a stripped down soul song from the deep south.
The variety in songs surely adds to the odd feeling pervasive throughout the entire album, yet it works. Usually I would say the album lacks cohesion but the songs are all united in their weirdness. While Love Buttons will probably prove to be too weird for the masses, for fans of the Elephant Six sound, this is right up their alley.
Rating: 8.2/10
MP3: M.T. Bearington “Tub Wash The Oval Owl”
Buy: iTunes or Amazon

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