Quirky, Disjointed, Refreshing: The Mumlers
By David Ma
A big fan and good friend once told me: “People don’t even see The Mumlers’ use of Soul in their music—the horn arrangements, tempos, and style are like old Soul music”. And that’s when I realized that the young band’s talents are more than manifold. So much so, that their music is often described in broad, overarching terms that limit the sound they actually achieve.
The San Jose band is constantly described as “Indie” or ”Folk”. Surely their sound has aesthetics that qualify those descriptions, but they encompass way more. “Dice In The Drawer” and “Whale Song” are the album’s finest moments, but also serve to highlight the band’s best qualities. On “Whale Song”, singer Will Sprott’s well-worded tale about youth, love, and one’s need to wander is a skeletal example of his slick songwriting, managing to bring full resolve to his various tangents by the song’s end. Moreover, “Dice In The Drawer” shows the band’s penchant for collaborative songwriting, and how mindful they can be in meshing together different instruments, sounds, and noise. With such dedication to cohesiveness, the music at times throughout the album could stand on its own as pure instrumentals.
It’s clear throughout the 11-tracks that The Mumlers have range. Whether containing elements of old country-western ballads (“Hitched To The Sun”) or displaying smooth pop sensibilities (“Red River Hustle”), the appeal is wide-ranging and do not pander to either side of the spectrum. In either case, the execution of the songs are done with originality, and more so, have a refreshing lack of self-absorption attached to each quirk and moments of playfulness throughout the record.
Thickets & Stitches is a very mature first album for a band that came out of nowhere. The music itself can be quite visual, complimenting Sprott’s sparse yet descriptive lyrics with French-horns and lively percussion. The Mumlers’ debut is a disjointed venture that is delivered with charm and, rare grace.
As I find myself going back to Thickets & Stitches, I think my friend’s assessment was right: in addition to being a very solid band, The Mumlers do have elements of Soul in their music, they do encompass more than what people have described them to be, and they are, in short, surprisingly pretty damn good.
*The Mumlers debut, Thickets & Stitches, is out now on Galaxia.
