When I say that Slaughter Beach, Dog’s new album “Crying, Laughing, Waving, Smiling” is their best album yet, just trust me. However, if you aren’t fully convinced, please direct your attention to new single “Engine”—a nine-minute, “On the Beach”-reminiscent epic folk track that punctuates the country swing of “Strange Weather,” “Float Away” and “Summer Windows.” It’s, by all means, Jake Ewald’s strongest lyrical work of his career thus far—which says something, given that he has long been one of our best storytellers.
It’s hard enough singing when the hotel chokes on your memories,” he sings. “Maybe let’s watch The Sopranos, maybe let’s order Chinese. The laundry isn’t breathing, I write about Julie in a little white chair. There’s nothing for music, there’s styrofoam crushed in the garbage.” “Engine” is a poem carved into the space of a song, as Ewald surveys his surroundings and plugs them in like a stream-of-conscious journal. With Erin Rae providing backing vocals and a triumphant, visceral guitar solo guiding the song’s breakdown, this is the epitome of generational, gob-smacking folk rock.
Around the making of “Crying, Laughing, Waving, Smiling”, Jake Ewald was particularly fascinated by artists who have managed to whittle down a life’s worth of memory and experience into an emotionally resonant piece of work, one of whose simplicity often belies just how enormous of a task that is. Ewald’s own writing feels instinctual, generous, and nuanced, and though it’s delivered with growing awareness, he admits he didn’t immediately realize when his attempts with Slaughter Beach, Dog tended towards something similarly wide-encompassing, if still ambiguous, like on the 9-minute single ‘Engine’. The album floats beautifully from one song to the next, giving each character and story the space to exist and reasons to hold onto them. They’re never the same for everyone, but no matter where it hits you, it’s a kind of featherlight marvel.
The Fat Angel Sings 