Monkton: Introducing Capybara
Monkton and Plankton have eyes and ears everywhere. We’re in your house, we’re in your iPod and one day, hopefully, we will be in your mind. Twittering.
We’re also in America and our US sources have this week delivered a real find. It’s 4ft tall, hairy all over, and can be best described as a big leggy Guinea Pig.
When it’s not grazing on Venezuelan grass-land, the Capybara makes alternative music. At least that’s how I understand it… Their debut album Try Brother has just made it on to my virtual desk, and I have, these past few hours, excitedly absorbed it from top to toe.
Assuming the same stomping ground as The Dodos (‘stomp’ being the operative word here), Capybara seem to have tapped into the sharpest fragments of the contemporary alt scene with kaleidoscopic expertise. Give the album a spin and you’ll hear echoes of Vampire Weekend, Animal Collective, Bishop Allen, BLK JKS, Sufjan Stevens (the list could, and does, go on), and you wouldn’t be wrong for drawing comparison. Most importantly, as much as Capybara seem to take cues from other musicians, they master every sound they make and never sound like pretenders, always like musicians; original, diverse, vibrant. Not that I mean to gush. Take a tour for yourself:
Highlights
Capybara set the agenda with ‘The Wimp’: first the gentle reiterative beat of a hand-drum, summoning the tribal spirit that possesses much of the record; then a burst of psych-math indie, playful, alert; and finally the joyful refrain, a swinging baroque march pinning the song to the rafters. This opener, and many of the tracks to follow, bends and mutates with all the elasticity of a contortionist. And this is Capybara’s great charm - complete command of their vehicle, steered in frankly magical directions.
MP3: ‘Happiness / Let Child Roam’ - Capybara
The choir that bears the load of this song comes somewhere out of the recesses of old Hollywood movies, a haunted presence ‘wishing upon a star’ - homely and creepy, like the soundtrack to a Tim Burton film - once more to turn on itself, and reemerge as a charismatic alt romp.
MP3: ‘Birthday Song for Bridgegirl’ - Capybara
And did I mention Fleet Foxes? There’s some of that in here too, albeit made to evolve beyond the comfort of a vintage nursery. Again a transformational song. Again awe-inspiring.
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And the best thing about it? You can download the whole album for free from their website.
Capybara - Try Brother
Monkton x
