Are You Dreaming Kind ? New Orchids
Dreaming Kind ? I am. This LP is just for me and those who revel in daydreams. The Dreaming Kind may not have tons of reverb. It may not wander off into overdub landscapes such as My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless. However it is a formidable and enchanting indie record full of melodic pop. In a sentence? This LP is essential for fans of indie music. So promptly go here https://theorchidsglasgow.bandcamp.com/ Please do read on.
The Orchids, masters of indie pop song return with Dreaming Kind. For those neophytes, The Orchids started out on the under rated indie label Sarah Records. Even though this takes place some 30 years ago, I can say Sarah and its bands leave an indelible mark on my music aesthetics. The Orchids being top in that class. Before we go deep into this fine LP, you can always look back on the first single and video for This Boy’s A Mess here https://meatsheetfanzine.com/new-night-school-juniper-and-orchids/
First off, I have to say The Dreaming Kind is like an old friend. Especially Mr. Hackett’s vocals. You may know someone who you don’t see much regularly. However when you see them again you pick up right where you left off.
Seamlessly, familiarly, The Dreaming Kind is like that. The friend or analogous LP shows growth and change. Simultaneously, though, the qualities that you know and love are still present, unchanged. As I say in the review of the single, Mr Hackett on lead vocals voice is still soothing and familiar.
That is to say , if one knows this band. If you don’t know them, look at this as your opportunity to be acquainted. Without heaping more praise, let’s examine this latest offering from The Orchids a bit more closely.
First and foremost is a number Didn’t We Love You, which happens to be the second single. Although the music is pleasant, the lyrics may indicate a friendship or acquaintance gone wrong. Guitar track contains wah squawks and sustains that opens to vulnerable lyric ” Hey ! ” And so the pop journey begins. This is not the jangliest song , but it sure is catchy. The crisp, snappy and resounding drums get a spotlight during a quick interlude/ guitar solo. Perhaps The Orchids may have done something like this post Sarah records.. However it is new to me. A pleasant surprise. Shame on myself for not investigating the back catalog more.
Speaking of Sarah catalog, if this label were to put out another of its notorious compilations, the second track Limitless #1 (Joy) is textbook Sarah comp material. The difference being, forgive me if I say this several times, is experience and the overall tonality being more seasoned.
As I look back and then hear Dreaming Kind the leap in production, playing, arrangement, and writing is obvious.
The Orchids are not newbies. On this song you can tell. The background is lush. Lingering bass. The snare is crisp. The vocals are layered and / or have chorus effect. They are deep and rich, with slight echo. There is twinkling percussion accent that is subtle and striking. Could it be actual bell set/ xylo? Studio trick or keys? It just works whatever it is. When they distort a signal, be it vocals, guitars, or other. It is tweaking it just right with an ear for detail. One can’t just start music brand new and sound like this. On this song and entire album I can distinctly hear an attention to detail that is exciting and fresh.
Moving on What Have I Got To Do . This song is quiet but effective. The guitars start clean and acoustic in tone. A slight classical feel to the strum. Ghostly echoes usher in the beat. This beat feels like electronica but not cold and inhuman. If you remember Sarah adjacent band White Town ? (If not look them up) The singing combined with the guitars feel like a nod to them. There is murky, yet satisfying undertone of notes that again, could be processed percussion or synths.
Next is the first single. This Boy’s A Mess. It would be great to click on this link. You will see the video embedded https://meatsheetfanzine.com/new-night-school-juniper-and-orchids/ I will say the hooks and earworms get kicked up a notch for this track.
Track Number 5 is I Never Thought I Was Clever. Mellow, downtempo musing with flanged out swirling accents. Synthesizer with hints of blue or sadness set the tone.
The chorus is spacious and kicks up the energy. Snappy snare drums keep the track from being too “blue ” On the other hand the push pull effect of downtempo (slight melancholy) beginning to chorus is invigorating.
The guitars have that Smiths Johnny Marr like tonality, it’s just classic. The vocals even have heavy signal processing you hear on The Smiths Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others. Think echoed to the point where the signal almost breaks up and sounds doubled or tripled. If not my favorite track on Dreaming Kind, it’s very close.
Speaking of echos , next is Echos (Have Hope). A memorable call and response lyric and vocal melody. The bass is very musical but not overplayed. Bravo. It’s nice to hear accents rather than straight angular bass lines. Don’t get me wrong, straight forward, no frills bass has its merits. Maybe in Joy Divison, but for Echos (Have Hope) , what is not played is as important as what is played. In other words, the rhythm has an interesting syncopation ( hope that is the correct term as I play by feel and the definitions sometimes escape me). You even get some back up vocals and a crisp clap track.
This song is fresh like a sun drenched newly laundered linen on the clothesline. Yes, I say that earnestly.
Isn’t It Easy is next. A clean guitar intro that takes me back to Orchids days of old. In fact many of the Orchids and their peers capitalized on gently picked arpeggiated chords. Think Field Mice if you know them. Make no mistake. It is 100% the Orchids. The gentle synth washes and blends with the guitar and its simplicity is magical. Breathy vocals. Orchestral string accompaniment that is probably a synth but it doesn’t matter either way. The result is fantastic.
Something Missing is a surprise. A groovy pop song. Hints of funk, possible disco permeate the mix. I mean this in the best way possible but it is very much like the sounds the Cardigans use on album Life. The difference being is Mr Hackett on vox rather than Nina from Cardigans.
This may be my favorite on the album or tie for favorite. Simply put, it just stands out due to the nod to R and B favor. When I mention disco, I refer to the badass thump and bass elements and not the cheesy fashionable parts that spawned a rebellion against it. I guess you have to have been there to fully get it. If you are too young to know then just revel in the beat of Something Missing. A fun mid tempo dance track for all ages. The lyric and melody ” I don’t know what I can do anymore” is super catchy and begs to be hummed along with.
Complete with plinking funk chords and some wah pedal, Something Missing creates a celebratory bounce unlike any other I’ve heard from the Orchids. That said, it’s time for me to fill in the back catalog of Orchids. I’ve been away too long.
The ninth track is I Should Have Thought brings the energy of Something Missing down a bit. But it makes up for this change with minimal but melodic piano. Steady clapping, downtempo beat. The guitars are not in the foreground on this song, they are in service to the other elements. Wispy backgrounds that could be slightly robotic whispers. Flanged out, mysterious, I Should Have Thought is sublime. I love the female backing vocals which take me back to some of my favorite songs from their Unholy Soul LP. The lyrics seem to be musings on love and how it affects the singer. “My love – my love sees black, dark or light / My love – my love sees only colours in the night” The way these lyrics are sung add another level to the song that asks me to analyze what is going on. That is sonically, lyrically, and overall.
A great song for a rainy night, but it’s still just as captivating with or without precipitation.
I Don’t Mean To Stare opens with an intro that is again unlike any I’ve heard from the Orchids. A string instrument that has a banjo like quality. Vocals spoken through what sounds like a loudspeaker. Thumping bass, gently picked clean tones that take me back to the previously mentioned Sarah records days. These evolve into heavily effected signal. I can’t make out if it is keys or regular guitars just saturated with filters. It lends an air of mystery. Also I Don’t Mean To Stare features horn sounds and a catchy refrain. “Didn’t I , Didn’t I see the love in your eyes?” What hits the hardest besides the obvious vocal melody is the cadence of how it is sung.
A Feeling I Don’t Know is also thick with mystery, ( like I Don’t Mean To Stare ) mood, and foggy atmosphere. More guitar tones that seem to be crafted with diligence and care. In this case and many others on Dreaming Kind (again) experience makes a difference. You can hear layers that go beyond a basic three or four piece band who is just starting out. Once again I don’t know if these sounds are all guitar or keys or other. It doesn’t matter that much. Alas I’m Virgo and want to hyper analyze what the Orchids are doing, how they did it, etc . It’s probably better if I just soak in the tones.
I Want You, I Need You captures a sense of longing. The stop and go combined with the smoothed out chorus really give this track a dynamic feeling of urgency, dare I say ? Desire ? Ronnie Borland’s bass shines on many tracks but is especially hypnotic on this number. The drums are similar. They’re smooth, simple when needed. The rolls are satisfying. These beats anchor the rest of the song and compliment Mr. Borland’s bass as one would hope a rhythm section would.
In conclusion Limitless #2 (Hurt) closes the LP. At first listen.. Is this a case of what happens when you don’t win your lover over? Is it a mere continuation and flipside of the coin to Limitless #1 (Joy) ? Again no matter, unless you are interpreting the story of the lyrics. The feeling is stark, sublimely beautiful, but not without melancholy. Hence the title containing Hurt ? The minimal beat in the background awaits to be discovered. This track sneaks up on you, disarms you, and before you know it.. this September LP Dreaming Kind is over.