Glasgow synthpop trio Chvrches had bright pop hits on their 2013 debut, but since most pigeonholed the group as anathema to the mainstream at the time, nothing could have prepared long-time fans for the pure pop blitz that came out of single "Leave A Trace" in the summer of 2015. Not that the fundamental sounds of the song were much different than early tracks "The Mother We Share" or "We Sink", but now Chvrches seemed right in line with other pop acts like Taylor Swift or Carly Rae Jepsen. However, instead of coming across as a sell-out move, "Leave A Trace" proved how the musical landscape reshaped between 2013 and 2015, becoming more hospitable to Chvrches' charms. Indeed: their sensitive synthpop slowly mingled its way through radio until their sophomore album "Every Open Eye" dropped in late September 2015. One precursory listen and it becomes readily apparent that Lauren Mayberry, Marthin Doherty, and Iain Cook are not only a truly unified band--at least two of the three members share singing or songwriting/producing duties at any given time--but they're savvy too. With "Every Open Eye", they don't skirt the issue of sounding more mainstream, mainly because their songs were never that underground to begin with. So, their scope is wider this time around, incorporating house elements in the phenomenal singles "Clearest Blue" and "Keep You On My Side", and then turning to unabashed, bouncy pop in "Empty Threat" and "Bury It". This might alienate early-Chvrches purists at first, but only because "Every Open Eye" pulls a nifty trick: instead of being steeped in emotions and atmospheres, these eleven songs thrive on melody and vibrant beats. This means that this whole concoction can please fickle pop fans by surface pleasure alone, but because the lyrics don't get lost in the production (which itself is more polished than on the debut), each spin unveils considerably more thematic depth than the last. Lauren Mayberry was also keen in giving her voice some grit and growl, pushing through the sheen and giving even the fluffiest tunes a tangible emotional center. Best of all, is that while the songs are buoyed by the strength of the music, they are hooky and memorably enough to stand on their own--nowhere is this more true than on "Afterglow", the closing Enya-esque track that uses only a synthesizer to capture the ethereal grace in Mayberry's lyrics and voice. "Every Open Eye" might be easier to love than "The Bones of What You Believe", but that certainly is no indicator that Chvrches are abandoning their stylistic eccentricities. If anything, they've improved on them, because now that they've faced real stardom together, they've rallied together instead of coming apart. This tight focus makes "Every Open Eye" a notably stronger album overall than their first, and a shining example of what pop should sound like in the mid-2010s.
Recommended Tracks in Bold:
1. Never Ending Circles 2. Leave A Trace 3. Keep You On My Side
4. Make Them Gold 5. Clearest Blue 6. High
Enough to Carry You Over
7. Empty Threat 8. Down Side of Me 9. Playing Dead
10. Bury It 11.
Afterglow
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