Smiling Lessons
Land Ski, 2020
9/10
A St. Paul, Minnesota duo who are as prolific as they are exceptional, The Persian Leaps return with 7 new tunes of their indie-rock meets power-pop hybrid that recruits traces of post-punk, Brit-rock and even New Wave amid their highly melodic approach.
“PRN” starts the listen with power-pop strumming, bright melodies and a crisp, playful delivery, and “Chamberlin” continues the fun with some crunchy guitar work alongside some nods to ‘90s alt-rock
Elsewhere, “Lost Cause” moves swiftly while channeling the spirit of Elvis Costello with a punchy, jangly feel, while “Spoon-Fed” is pure melody and power that’s syrupy sweet but with a bit of grit, too. “The Entertainer” exits the listen on a high note, where the their brand of indie-rock flows with a timeless, energetic spirit.
Now consisting of just Drew Forsberg (vocals, guitars, keys, drum programming) and Jon Hunt (bass, vocals), The Persian Leaps are entirely a studio band at this point, and, as long as they keep pumping out guitar driven rock of this caliber, no one should have a problem with that.
Travels well with: Sugar Stems- Only Come Out At Night; Sloan- Commonwealth