s signing to and subsequent embrace of hi-fi studio recording, plus the inclusion of his touring band in the studio, was a sugary sucker punch to his fans and the indie music press alike. As of 2010, every release to date consisted of Pinks home-recordedsmudged guitar and synth arrangements coupled with his own beatboxed mouth drums, all cut to 4 and 8-track cassette. The Doldrums, Worn Copy, andHouse Arrestall have their own peculiar genius, but nothing comes close to the life-affirming vocal harmonies of Bright Lit Blue Skies and Round And Round (tfw the chorus hits unrivaled)beaming out in high fidelity. Almost every song on Before Today is an update of deep cuts originally recorded during Pinks prolific songwriting period of the early 00s. B-sides from Oddities Sodomies (Round And Round, Lestat, Little Wig), Scared Famous (Beverly Kills) and Grandes Exitos (Cant Hear My Eyes, Revolutions A Lie) get the pro studioupdate required to appropriately showcase their brilliance. The entire A side is flawless: Hot Body Rub sets the tone, similar to the front cover scene with sleazystreet corner sax creeping through the fog, before launching into a saccharine cover of The Rockin Ramrods 1966 garage pop gem Bright Lit Blue Skies, and you know youre not in Kansas anymore. Lestat touches on Haunted Graffiti circa House Arrest with an unpredictable suite of proggy chord changes and movements that shift between slow, fast, quiet and loud (this is the sleeper cut that gets in your head after youve rinsed out all thebig singles). Fright Night is a dreamy new wave roller that wears Ariels love for on its sleeve, showcasinghis entire suitcaseofoddball characters and weird voices trading bars like Rae & Ghost on . Beverly Kills is the most obvious dancefloor banger on offer, with Ariel channeling via haphazardly rolling a joint riding shotgun with the songs titular character cruising Sunset Blvd. And lets not forget Round And Round, an update of an older rarity (originally titled Frontman, from Odditties Sodomies) and easily atop 3 (or 1)Ariel Pinksong. This year's certainly proved he's still got it,but Before Today is the one youllshowyour kids. Highly recommended.
- printed insert with lyrics
- digital download included
- music label:4AD 2010
