Well, gang, it’s almost that time of the year. Summer is quickly approaching, temperatures are a’risin, and you need to find some new tunes for the season. While you await the return of Mr. Tasty, make sure to pick-up the latest album from The Everyday Visuals, a self-titled effort.
Rising from the ashes of Paun Unction, the members of this Boston-based band consist of Christopher Pappas (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Eli Scheer (guitar, vocals, keyboards), Joseph Seiders (drums, vocals, keyboards), Kyle Fredrickson (guitar, keyboards). As an ensemble, they deliver an onslaught of pop music 
(the good kind). The harmonies in “Intro (Morning Star)” sound better than just about anything you’ll hear on the radio today (“I feel just like/You’re morning star”). The gentle sounds floating from your speakers can be likened to Fleet Foxes, and they aren’t just present on the opening track. “Florence Foster Jenkins” would fit in comfortably with the Foxes’ debut.
After the somber setting of the opener, pop majesty is at court in the track “Limb to Limb”. Lead singer Pappas pleads, “Will you talk to me, talk to me?/Tell me a story, tell me a story,” over guitar work that would make A.C. Newman red with envy. It’s tracks like this and the Beach Boys-influenced, “I’ll Take It All in Stride” that scream, “Summer time!” Solid pop music with beautiful melodies over shimmering musical arrangements.
There are introspective songs to be found in The Everyday Visual’s album. “Restless Heart” asks boys to “hold on to your lover/Or she’ll turn into a tired song of what went wrong” over acoustic guitar and piano. The slide guitar that creeps into the mid-way point of the track reminds us of Wilco’s Being There. The crowning moment of the album arrives in “Boom! Boom! Boom!”, with hints of Kinks riffs and even our cousins from the north, Sloan.
They wear their influences on their sleeves, but they pay tribute to the bands that came before them and fit in comfortably with the bands of today. With any luck, The Everyday Visuals, with Pappas, will continue to build an audience, major label or not. “It’s all I can do not to burst.”
Check Out:
“Boom! Boom! Boom!”
