Instant Night
Northern Spy, 2021
8/10
A long running D.C. outfit spearheaded by Chad Clark (who was also in Smart Went Crazy), Beauty Pill have never done anything conventional in their illustrious career, and this 4 song EP continues that trend with some election themed tunes.
The title track starts the listen with a dreamy playfulness, where Erin Nelson’s soft and smooth vocals are met with gliding woodwinds thanks to Aaron Harman as well as well timed electronic organs, and “Common Chokecherry” follows with versatile drumming from Devin Ocampo in the brief, stylish, indie-rock instrumental that’s full of atypical chord progressions.
On the back half, “You Need A Better Mind” welcomes brass from Victoria Banos, Sarah Hughes and Don Godwin, as Clark’s flowing vocals complement the old Japanese synthesizer that’s also in attendance, and the Brown Eno Remix of the same song continues the creativity with skittering electronica and vocals used in wordless ways amid a radiant buzzing that even flirts with techno and funk.
This current version of Beauty Pill also includes Basla Andolsun (bass) and Drew Doucette (guitar), and under Clark’s highly creative vision they’re still defying boundaries in the area of indie-rock, effectively cultivating some version of chamber art-rock that you can’t avoid being intrigued with.
Travels well with: Springtime- Springtime; Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog- Hope