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Fans of indie rock rightfully creamed themselves when word came down that members of Vampire Weekend and Ra Ra Riot were working together on a side project called Discovery.

Discovery's debut album, simply titled "LP," is out July 7. I have a copy, and my early impression is "ehh." Like a lot of listeners, I had pretty high expectations, considering VW and RRR have both been putting out unique, catchy songs for a few years now. But sometimes the reverse of the cliche is true and the whole is worth less than the sum of the parts -- especially with supergroups (exceptions: CSN, CSNY, Damn Yankees and Blind Faith).

The duo -- VW synth guru Rostam Batmanglij and Ra Ra Riot singer Wes Miles -- is an interesting combo for several reasons. Miles' voice is a lot like VW's Ezra Koenig, so that means some of these songs sound like VW songs. That said, the collection is so heavily synth-laden, that even when Discovery uses VW-like tropical beats, it has its own identity. That is impressive.

The opener, "Orange Shirt," is a fun, uptempo track with Miles singing the lead.

Listen to "Orange Shirt" here.

By track two, "Osaka Loop Line," we're greeted by Auto-Tune-treated vocals, which is surprising, and to some fans, off-putting. Here, because the track is so busy and skitchy, it works.

From then on, Auto-Tune is in place for the majority of the album, including "Can You Discover?," a creative remake of Ra Ra Riot's hit "Can You Tell?" Re-tooling a source band's song for a new project is a unique idea, and while the original is much better, "Can You Tell?" will never be played in a dance club. "Can You Discover?" might be.

"I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend," with guest vocals by Angel Deradoorian from Dirty Projectors, is even more clubby. And the aforementioned Koenig makes a guest appearance on "Carby," where is voice gets the Auto-Tune treatment.

"LP's" songs are not as strong as VW or RRR songs. But, paradoxically, if Discovery is promoted right -- like if Batmanglij is caught canoodling with Leighton Meester or something -- these songs stand a much greater chance of mainstream pop success than the bands these guys play in full-time.

 

 

 

About the Author

Education
Penn State University, University Park
Bachelors degree: Journalism, English minor
Saint Joseph's University, Philadelphia
Masters of arts degree: Writing studies
Manchester University, Manchester, England
Communications

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