Asleep At Heaven’s Gate – Rogue Wave (Brushfire Records)

The year 2006 was full of activity and turmoil for California’s Rogue Wave. There was some great news when founding member Zach Rogue had a baby daughter, but sadly, guitarist Gram LeBron’s father passed away and drummer Pat Spurgeon had a kidney transplant (and was understandably out of commission for a good amount of time.) Adding to the mayhem was the fact that Sub Pop was no longer home to the band’s recordings while another new member had joined the crew. (Original bassist Sonya Westcott’s successor, Evan Farrell was replaced by Patrick Abernethy from Beulah.) Eventually the band signed to Jack Johnson’s Brushfire Records. Apparently, Johnson and G Love are big fans! Rogue Wave also found time to contribute a song (“Sightlines”) to the Spider-Man 3 soundtrack. Asleep At Heaven’s Gate was recorded in California and produced by Roger Moutenot, who had previously worked with Yo La Tengo and Elvis Costello, among others. The album features some choice guests including Matthew Caws (Nada Surf) and John Vanderslice.

Asleep At Heaven’s Gate opens with a six minute epic titled “Harmonium.” Dazzling drums followed by insistent keys kick off the song, which twists and turns through piano pop into layers of guitar bliss, before paving the way for an immense sing-along right around the five minute mark. Rogue’s cries of “we better bust them out” might well be a battle cry to initiate the rest of the album. The production on Asleep is immaculate and the band willingly nurtures a huge sound, but as we’d soon find out, quite a few of the songs linger a bit too long. “Just Like I Needed” and “Phonytown” provide instant, catchy hooks and sugary harmonies (although the latter, like the former, could possibly have been contained as a three minute gem as well). The layered vocals are constantly echoing throughout the record and, at times, make it almost impossible to tell what Rogue might be singing about. And that is definitely unfortunate, since the coherent bits are powerful and hit the mark.

“Chicago x 12” reverts to aligned keys and guitars, and is sustained by a wonderful melody and some poignant lyrics -- “I never could make it work out right / her milk glows in the blacklight / but it don’t matter / because no one comes out to see us.” “Lake Michigan” features acoustic and electric guitars, complementing each other perfectly, along with appropriately placed hand-claps and the now commonplace layered vocals. Rogue Wave takes time out to do a few downtrodden, sparse folk songs as well. “Christians In Black” is a haunting ode, each verse featuring existentialist lyrics such as “the dinner roll’s the only value / born and raised to be an alcoholic / every day is just like the next” while “Missed” is equally gloomy, citing lost love and ending with a bitter line -- “but I guess you’ve made up your mind / so what’s next.”

Our favorite (despite the unnecessary last minute or so) is “Own Your Own Home”, an accessible, freewheeling jam session recorded with around thirty of the band’s friends. No strangers to comparisons to The Shins, Rogue Wave oblige with a few Shins-esque ditties as well. “Ghost” includes assistance from Bill Cameron (of The Winechuggers) on keys while “Fantasies” boasts an addictive hook and a simple but reasonable chorus. Closer “Cheaper Than Therapy” ends the record on a somewhat expected down note. There is some filler in this album, not necessarily in regard to any specific tracks (well, “Lullaby” is a snoozer!), but mostly due to the lack of cohesion and clarity towards the end of the longer songs. But for the large part, Asleep At Heaven’s Gate is a paradise of soothing sounds accentuated by Rogue’s trademark vocals and willingly aided by a generous supply of six-strings and keys.

Rogue Wave: [official] [myspace]