Moonbabies
The Orange Billboard
Hidden Agenda
Musically, The Orange Billboard is nearly flawless. Think Trembling Blue Stars with less ’80s keyboard cheese, or Low collaborating with New Order and Yo La Tengo. The band knows their way around a bittersweet melody. You probably won’t find catchier, more danceable indie-pop than the first four tracks on this album.
Lyrically, things start to get more interesting. Moonbabies hail from Sweden and have a decidedly skewed take on English grammar and metaphorical imagery. Take, for example, the lyrics from “Over My Head”: “And you will need / another meal of my sour cream.” Or, “You can’t smell the dirt until they crap on your lawn” from “Fieldtrip USA.” Slightly bizarre stuff to place in a broken-hearted context, but it’s also a refreshing digression from the overly reiterated Dashboard route.
Parasol Records: http://www.parasol.com/
