Spectreview: Mr Twin Sister – Al Mondo Azul

Released: November 19, 2021

Experimental Pop
(Indie Pop)
(Dance)
(Electronic)

-DARK ORANGE-

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Brooklyn shapeshifters Mr Twin Sister may describe themselves as “quietly influential,” but I would argue that fiat is tied up in the fact that they kind of always show up a year or so late for the actual big changes to the zeitgeist. 2011’s In Heaven, and its effete indie pop, felt like a response to the rising scene they inhabited. In 2014’s Mr Twin Sister, the band cannily rebranded and took advantage of the growing trend toward the ineptly-named “PBR&B.” I don’t know what Salt was besides eclectic, arguably too much so. Where they might see themselves a fringe band pulling gently on the rug, they could also just be collecting the grime and dust from the broom.

Harsh, perhaps? I feel like I gotta be a little hard on this band, given that they happen to be one of my personal favorites ever. Mr Twin Sister was a life-altering record for me because it was the first time I could see exactly what a band was trying to do without any outside help; it was like a palatal awakening. It’s also an incredible record with incredible songs that are tied together with a dream logic I felt I could understand intuitively. I’m fully aware that though it’s hard for any band to be pretentious by virtue of their overt ambitions Mr Twin Sister certainly come close to that descriptor, but goddamn I love that band. They do it for me.

So maybe I have to swerve hard in the opposite direction to counteract whatever biases I have toward the band. My first impressions of Al Mondo Azul, their fourth record and first with an obvious connection to its predecessor, are certainly positive. It’s not transcendent by any stretch of the imagination, but that’s because it plays in the same minimal shallows that confounded Salt. Instead it hits a respectable altitude by the funky, bubbly “Expressions” and cruises there for most of its runtime, which is never an easy feat.

This is one of those instances where putting out half the record as singles actually helps out, because it showcases how solid most of these songs are by themselves while also highlighting which ones are pleasant surprises. The one I’m thinking of is “Carmen,” which pairs flamenco with uptempo house in a super compelling fashion. It, along with the jittery “Polvo” and the buzzing “Beezle,” are perfect examples of the band’s penchant for pure craft, constructing their songs as if they were actually wearing those hardhats on the cover. Al Mondo Azul works best on an sonic level, as the four piece pursue the pleasures of thumping beats and complex clashing sounds in ways only they could do.

What I normally crave from this band, because they’ve delivered it so well before, is a successful subtext underlying the music. While Andrea Estella remains a unique presence on record, shaping words to unconventional ends in a voice that bends and snaps like a ruler, her Björk-lite approach here isn’t as effective. You get the feeling the band try to say something here, whether its in the climate-based anxieties of “Polvo” and “Despoil” or the mild social commentary of “Fantasy” and “Youth Obsessed,” but its all too unfocused and surface-level to make much of an impact. I do think it’s always effective to marry upbeat tunes with a subtle darkness, like on the mildly creepy voguer “Diary,” but for the most part the substance takes a backseat to the album’s aural charms.

Those charms make up for it, though. Mr Twin Sister have always held an eye for detail, and that doesn’t change here. The sleaziness of the saxophones on the tail-end of “Youth Obsessed” are but one example, as they punctuate Estrella’s bemused kiss-off of the music industry’s modus operandi. The revving guitars on “Carmen” add a cinematic drama to the song’s conflicted desire, while Estrella’s high-range performance on “Ballarino” makes an immediate connection to Madonna before that low hook adds an addictive, obsessive hue. More so than Salt, and even more so than In Heaven, Al Mondo Azul rewards multiple parsings of its dense building blocks, as long as you don’t get too caught up in the words.

Recommended for deep sea diving.