Album review: “Young and Old”

Tennis’ upcoming album “Young and Old,” which releases Feb. 14, sounds like something I have heard before.

The Denver, indie-pop group consists of vocals and keyboard by Alaina Moore, her husband Partick Riley on the guitars, and James Barone on drums. Moore has a smooth and sweet, caramel-like voice which is assisted nicely by the laid back, lounge-type music.

The full album is only about 35 minutes long, with ten tracks averaging three to four minutes each. The first track, coincidentally, starts off with “It All Feels The Same” which is a strong and catchy intro to the album. But the more I listen, the more it sounds familiar, it all feels the same.

A part of the song “Origins” reminds me of some of Gwen Stefani’s softer tracks. It is also a catchy number but not quite enough to be an earworm. “My Better Self” is a slower track which is executed in all the right ways except they forgot to make it interesting

“Traveling” brings out some faster tempo keyboarding and a much more interesting vocal performance than the previous track. “Petition” makes me feel like I’m listening to ’90s music, whether that be good or bad is up to the listener.

The next two tracks, “Robin” and “High Road” have such a similar sound that it is hard to distinguish between them. Moore sings a sweet little melody and Riley does a much too muted guitar part which seems to be playing behind the background music.

The old-fashioned sound of “Dreaming” may be the reason why the song sounds so familiar. Moore does a great job with the vocals but the repetitiveness of the second half of the track makes one’s conscience drift.

Perhaps one of the more interesting tracks is “Take Me To Heaven With You” which is upbeat and offers an interesting array of beats. The drum and guitar bridge in the middle gives a Vampire Weekend vibe but the whole song is pulled off quite well.

The last track, “Never To Part” starts off with a promising buildup but gets more and more disappointing at the song goes on with uninteresting keyboards and drums and the same vocal melody of the previous tracks.

This album will give you a warm fuzzy feeling in the midst of the cold winter. It’s a nice listen but it probably won’t stick in the minds of most and is more like a passing moment of euphoria before going about our lives.

Advocate Staff