When
Sweeping Promises
' debut album
Hunger for a Way Out
arrived in the middle of 2020, it was one of the more pleasant surprises in a time filled with terrible ones. Though its release in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic was a coincidence, it spoke to the moment perfectly. Recorded in a few weeks in a converted laboratory with a single microphone, its grimy atmosphere, coupled with bassist/vocalist
Lira Mondal
's piercing voice and multi-instrumentalist
Caufield Schnug
's burbling keyboards, echoed the suffocating isolation of the pandemic's early days (as well as the work of
the Units
and
Devo
). Urgent yet distant,
sounded like a fading transmission that
desperately had to make, and listeners responded. As they gained fans, however,
Schnug
Mondal
lost their jobs and had to leave their home base of Boston, ultimately settling in a Lawrence, Kansas home with a serendipitously perfect space for recording. While their lives were in flux,
maintained control over their music, and
Good Living Is Coming for You
is arguably even more focused than their debut.
's second album underscores that their lo-fi, mono recording techniques aren't just a necessity -- they're a specific aesthetic choice that they use eloquently. Within these songs' crumbling walls of sound, there are abundant details to savor, like the way the synth arpeggios ricochet around the dive-bombing bass and guitar on "Can't Hide It"'s gentrification lament. Where
felt like shoving back against a world closing in,
Good Living
feels like being trapped by the consequences of one's own actions. "Good Living Is Coming for You" makes the implied threat of being consumed by consumerism explicit with lunging, dubby, disco-punk; "Connoisseur of Salt" skewers the obsession with creature comforts with a pinch of
X-Ray Spex
-like saxophone for good measure, and "Eraser" embodies self-deprecation with towering keyboards and vocals ready to collapse at any moment. As on
,
's commanding voice is the glue that holds together
. Whether she snarls and wails over eerie synth strings on "You Shatter" or piles her harmonies to the skies on the excellent "Throw of the Dice," she proves the nervy mix of powerhouse female vocals and gritty arrangements can still be as potent as when
Pylon
Blondie
, and
the B-52s
pioneered it. The tighter, more melodic songwriting lets different sides of
' sound emerge, and moments like "Shadow Me"'s '50s pop homage deliver existential dread with a charmingly wry sense of humor.
was such a strikingly rough diamond that
couldn't have the same element of surprise, but the refinements
have made only reinforce how consistent and distinctive their music is -- and how much more it has to offer. ~ Heather Phares