Appearing as if out of the dusky, late-afternoon shadows of downtown Los Angeles, post-punk noir outfit the Buttertones have built a loyal fan base amalgamating wild-eyed surf twang, punky dance-rock grooves, cool '50s pulp novel imagery, and a yearning, '80s guitar jangle. They bring all of these touchstones to bear on their brilliantly moody fifth studio album, 2020's Jazzhound. Once again working with producer Jonny Bell (who produced their equally engaging 2018 album Midnight in a Moonless Dream), the Buttertones ...
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Appearing as if out of the dusky, late-afternoon shadows of downtown Los Angeles, post-punk noir outfit the Buttertones have built a loyal fan base amalgamating wild-eyed surf twang, punky dance-rock grooves, cool '50s pulp novel imagery, and a yearning, '80s guitar jangle. They bring all of these touchstones to bear on their brilliantly moody fifth studio album, 2020's Jazzhound. Once again working with producer Jonny Bell (who produced their equally engaging 2018 album Midnight in a Moonless Dream), the Buttertones coalesce their blue-toned sound with songs that balance their strong conceptual skills with lyrical hooks and perfectly executed arrangements. At the core of their sound is lead singer/songwriter Richard Araiza, who grounds each song with his broad baritone, evoking a dreamlike combination of Scott Walker, Joy Division's Ian Curtis, and French crooner Jacques Brel. It's a mood that also brings to mind Morrissey's early work with the Smiths, an influence the Buttertones nicely evoke throughout Jazzhound, especially on the sparkling guitar-and-synth balladry of "Fade Away Gently" and the driving arpeggiated kineticism of "Dirty Apartment." Other equally evocative influences abound, as on the funky "Rise and Shine," which vividly draws upon Orange Juice's loungey post-punk rhythms, punctuating them with a guttural, soulful baritone sax solo from London Guzman that sounds like it was culled straight from David Bowie's Black Tie White Noise. Elsewhere, they dig into their manic surf-rock riffs on the opening "Phantom Eyes," the Dick Dale-esque "Velour," and the propulsive, tube-amp-soaked "Bebop," the latter of which brings to mind the late-'70s art-punk of James Chance. While it's easy to sink back into the crepuscular rock ambiance of the Buttertones' sound, there's also a poetic, transcendental quality to Araiza's lyrics that lends these songs an added emotional heft. On "Denial You Win Again," he sings, "This feeling in my gut continues to grow/Have I been this man the whole time?/A chess game in my mind/I look away." It's that kind of cinematic introspection on Jazzhound that grabs you by the lapels and won't let you turn away. ~ Matt Collar, Rovi
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