Austinist Capsule Review: Javelins Heavy Meadows

Javelins, Heavy Meadows, Suburban Sprawl Music

Nothing inspires pop music like a soured relationship. Then again, nothing inspires bad pop like a soured relationship. For every honest portrayal of lost love there’s at least five other songs overflowing with bad metaphors, too-specific lyrics and unnecessarily pained vocals. Thankfully, Javelins chooses to be more oblique about the heartache that permeates its new LP, Heavy Meadows. Sure, there’s allusions to deep wounds and wilted flowers, but the album still succeeds in capturing the stinging moments at the end of a relationship where you find yourself thinking “What happened?” Javelins soothe that sting with an ointment of wiry post-punk rhythms and lush guitar textures (Now who’s writing bad metaphors?).

It’s those guitar textures that sell Heavy Meadows. Guitarist Matt Howard rings unimaginable sounds from his instrument, from lonely, slide-assisted howls (“Out on the Sand”) to undulating outer space transmissions (“Pickup Lines”). Howard’s work on the latter track makes room for singing drummer Matt Rickle’s chattering stick work and bassist Julian Wettlin’s slippery fills, in addition to setting up the song’s reverb-drenched reggae choruses. The record favors arrangements with an element of surprise, but the songs don’t suffer from their schizophrenic nature. Rather, these shifts offer rest to static progressions while also representing the ever-shifting dynamic between lovers falling out of love. Break ups don’t have to be painful, and as Heavy Meadows proves, neither does break-up music.

Javelins: [MySpace] [Official]

Javelins - "Out on the Sand" from Suburban Sprawl Music on Vimeo.