Happiness
Eagles Golden Touch, 2021
10/10
If you’ve spent any significant time in the midwest you’ve probably at least heard Mark Mallman’s name in passing. A long time player in the Twin Cities scene (he’s even got a star on the First Avenue wall), Mallman’s been releasing consistently great solo album’s since the late ‘90s, Happiness being his first in 5 years and a companion album to his memoir, The Happiness Playlist: The True Story of Healing My Heart With Feel-Good Music.
The title track opens the listen percussively strong with horns and animated guitar lines adding some funk flavor to the glorious setting, and “Humandemonology” follows with a playful glam-pop delivery that’s dance friendly while floating amid plenty of melody.
Closer the middle, “The Beauty Is Alive” builds into a soaring alt-rock flavored display of vocal acrobatics alongside a firm beat, while “Heartattackland” offers a firm acoustic strummer that’s also soaked in backing vocals and bright drumming. “A Life Can’t Be Replaced”, one of best tracks, then embraces some psyche-rock nods as orchestral ideas enter a very exploratory climate that’s textured meticulously.
Inching towards the end, “Fire Bird Light Bird” recruits piano and strings for poetic, cathartic creativity, and “For Love I Will Let Love Go” exits the listen with a diverse indie-rock anthem that’s got some tribal like drumming and emotion in spades.
Mallman has dealt with some serious tragedies in recent years, including the death of his mother, and his Happiness Playlist was designed to help him grieve. An effort that spans the spectrum of feelings that tie us together as human, some of the songs here are quite upbeat, glorious even, while others are steeped in despair. Like everything he’s been a part of, it’s well thought out, executed superbly and reinforces my long held belief that Mark Mallman is a musical treasure whose brilliance is all too often overlooked.
Travels well with: Steve Almaas- Everywhere You’ve Been; Jesse Malin- Outsiders