There is a communal quality to every track on the album; when listening, it’s almost like Dylan Metrano and the gang are sitting in your living room treating you to a private performance.
The brainchild of indie rock veteran Metrano, Tiger Saw’s list of contributors is too lengthy to list in a short review and occupies a considerable portion of the inside jacket cover. The Newburyport, Massachusetts-based band developed Sing! while on tour for their sophomore album on Kimchee Records, Gimme Danger/Gimme Sweetness. Instead of playing in clubs, Tiger Saw’s tour was quite unconventional as they sought out “unorthodox venues,” like campfires, beaches, forests, and suburban basements, in which to play. Their performances in such communal, public spaces inspired them to make an album that had the same democratic spirit. Instead of singing to their audience, they were going to sing with them.
Sing! does just that. The instrumentation is large and varied, which makes for an extremely interesting sound. The melodies are catchy and extraordinarily pretty, the album an extremely enjoyable listen. The lyrics are honest and direct, but have a joyous quality and are far from melancholy. This is music that will put you in a good mood.
The title track “Sing” is a very pretty pop song with such a sweet melody. It’s extremely catchy and really gets into your head, I found myself humming the melody hours after I last listened. The band members genuinely seem to be having fun and it is infectious; they are daring you to try to listen to this track and not enjoy yourself – it is impossible. The female lead’s vocals are absolutely stunning on this song. Her voice is beautiful, clear and luminous.
“Tiger and the Tailor” slows things down; the beginning of the song is stripped to just vocals and a piano. The harmony is beautiful and the song is incredibly calm and peaceful.
“Singing with Ghosts” suggests the feeling of a lullaby. It is soft and slow and dreamy.
“The Sea” speeds things up and has a rockish quality. The chanting and the electric guitars make it one of the harsher songs on the album.
To me, Tiger Saw eschews classification. Equal parts jazz, folk, pop, indie rock, and country, I found myself intrigued by their unique sound. Although some of their promotional material, and other reviewers, refer to them as “slow core,” I’m not sure this description captures the subtleties of each song.
The arrangements tend to be quite simplistic, giving it an “arts and crafts” feel; allowing you to believe that you too could create this music, even though you probably cannot. That contributes to the democratic quality of the entire album.
Pick up Sing! when you are craving a connection, when our isolating, anomic society is getting you down. Metrano and the gang will undoubtedly make you feel like you belong.
