Quick: are you chill? Relaxed? Affably lackadaisical? Then the band Real Estate may be for you.
An indie band from Ridgewood, New Jersey, Real Estate plays a brand of rock n' roll that lolls and gently hums like the sound of waves on the Jersey shore. Drawing together surf rock and jangly guitar à la the Byrds and R.E.M., Real Estate manages to be soothing without being sleep inducing.
Real Estate returns with Days, an album that is both an extension and improvement of their sound. 2009's Real Estate was by all measure a fine album, but sometimes so mellow that highlights and changes between songs were hard to distinguish. It was a low key affair.
Days flows along the same vibes, but is fuller and brighter than Real Estate. Keeping the laid-back atmosphere, Real Estate coasts through ten songs with just an added measure of punch. Opener ""Easy"" bursts like a flash of light, and ""Municipality"" features airy vocals wrapping around each other through a haze of guitar strums.
Suburbia is a recurring theme as well, with ""Green Aisles"" melding two oft-remarked suburban motifs: sterile grocery stores and cookie-cutter houses, as well as the aforementioned ""Municipality.""
But not all is chill with Real Estate. ""Out of Tune"" deals with alienation, while ""All the Same"" features lyrics which go ""There goes the day / Oh what a shame."" There is a sense of disquiet to Days, a moodiness and angst. But for Real Estate, this moodiness seems to go hand in hand with the ease of their music. Even on ""All the Same,"" with it's repeated ""Oh what a shame,"" they quickly add, ""It's OK / That's all the same.""
And that's the only real fault with Days: it's too easy. There is a sense of indifference in each song, like the band members could be doing other things with their time, like laundry or something. There are no anthems, no immediately identifiable lead singles, no abrupt changes in mood, and no shifts in tempo.
At the same time, there is an immense charm to Days, in its lazy calm. The music does not demand your attention, does not try to signify anything, does not try to grasp for anything beyond itself. Quite simply, it's enjoyable music you could put on studying or hanging out with a few friends.
Sure it's not ""exciting,"" but Days is like a good nap—something you just need sometimes. B+
