Spectreview: TOPS – I Feel Alive

TOPS’ I Feel Alive is insanely catchy, knowingly dispassionate indie pop that hits like a late-spring breeze.

-DEEP PINK-

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“My favorite ballads and sad movies
Don’t do nothing for me now”

One glance at Jane Penny’s hilariously dispassionate face on the cover art of TOPS’ newest album will tell you everything you need to know. I Feel Alive is stuffed with dreamy, insanely catchy, ‘80s-indebted indie pop that’s laced with an awareness of where this kind of music generally sits in the spectrum of human expression. Its grand movement is the ultra-harmonious title track, which has the potential to get stuck in your head for days. It comes early, but afterwards there are other standout examples of the band’s dedication to pop craft, like the breezy “Ballads and Sad Movies,” the strangely nostalgic “Colder & Closer” and the Lauper-like “OK Fine Whatever.” The band’s range isn’t terribly expansive, but it is focused, and they do a good job of sticking to their strengths and matching their humble ambition. That’s not to say what the band’s doing here isn’t challenging; just the opening track alone boasts an ABBA bass line, at least three-part harmonies, and the vintage trills of a jazz flute solo. I Feel Alive feels like the link between summery indie a la Beach Fossils’ Somersault and the pioneering 80’s music it’s indebted to, and it’s all done with aplomb.

Penny’s lyrics provide a satisfying level of depth for this avenue of music. They’re lighthearted and not self-serious, but there’s a distinct melancholy edge that rubs against the sprightly sentiment of the music – good pop’s best-kept secret. In fact, the tone is often disconcertingly frank, as Penny’s words often imply a weariness that comes from being eaten up by life and spit back out. Drowning is a common thread; on “Pirouette” she’s subsumed by social fatigue, on “Colder and Closer” it’s a paranoid guilt about past-heartbreak, and even when it’s just pure infatuation (on “Drowning in Paradise”) the implication is still dire. With the restrained touch of a professional, Penny criticizes the demands of modern life without overwriting the inherent joy of her and the band’s material, an excellently struck balance that further signals a job well done.

Recommended for that moment when you’re watching a video or playing a game and you’re really enjoying yourself and then it cuts to black for some reason and you see your dumb, half-lidded, slack-cheeked face reflected back in the screen and you realize how little you’ve done compared to seemingly everyone else in the world and for a split-second you kinda hate yourself, and then you forget about it and go get a snack.