Review: Lifeguard Nights - The Church of Song

Upon the demise of South Jersey Seashore Lifeguard Convention Band, Vincent Brue went straight back to work. In a strictly solo context, he buckled down and wrote dozens of songs, releasing them under the moniker of Lifeguard Nights. Earlier this year he recruited seven others and Lifeguard Nights was transformed into a full-fledged band. In addition to the usual rock instrumentation, melodica, jaw harp, and harmonium are part of the group's sound and so things have gone from rather minimal lo-fi to a more well-rounded version.

The burst of gospel that is the title track leads things off. It notes that "there is so much wrong in the world today" and offers music as a palliative. "Amen" follows and takes on organized religion much as Jethro Tull did with "My God". However, Brue does it with a late-60s pop pastiche featuring organ and jam band-like guitar noodling instead of the slashing 6-string chords and a C of E chorus hanging overhead. The beat skips along underneath a catchy chorus of "Well Jesus thinks you're an asshole" which makes the tune instantly memorable. The mocking and anger quickly go into hiding and are replaced by more doleful lyrics. "Downtown" is cut from the same musical template as "Amen" but it mourns an inability to get off the bottle. "Spare Tire" is reminiscent of early REM but replaces obscure lyrics with a lament about the narrator's extra girth. The ghost of Johnny Cash rears its head in the bleak "Nothing Left to Live For". What lies under that Motown tambourine is Brue coming down on a Sunday morning.

Listeners not at the bottom will appreciate the relief of "I'd Prefer It If You Weren't in Pornos" which has Brue's gritty voice showering his lover with praise. "Bastille Day" shows the first real signs of the musical eclecticism promised by an 8-piece band wielding a dozen or more instruments with the jaw harp and banjo contributing. The song opens with acoustic guitar strumming, a simple yet effective banjo melody, and the jaw harp bouncing in the background. This makes for a nice departure from the straight ahead pop of the previous 10 songs. Unfortunately, this was just a tease because, as soon as the drums enter, it's back to formula. "In the Navy Now" is faux Pogues while the epic closer "Over It" is notable only for closing the circle with a bit of the gospel that opened the album.

The Church of Song gets off to a good start but the formula grows stale. This is my first exposure to Vincent Brue and it's obvious that he can write a good pop song. He has a limited singing ability but the raggedness of his voice is what makes it great. But I was disappointed that eight musicians with an arsenal of instruments managed not to deviate all that much from the script. Thusly most of the album comes across as boilerplate. Individually the songs are good with a couple being great, but 43 minutes of them gets bogged down. There's a great EP lurking in here somewhere.