Like 22nd-century Beat poetry in a cocktail of roots/pop/funk, Flying Object’s first-born full-length “Homesick” is for when windows are down and defenses are up.
Released May 23, the album plates Matt O’Brian’s vocal and bass-led new Americana atop a tight ensemble: Max Flansburg and Mike Martinez (guitars), Chris O’Brian (drums) and Elliot Schwartzman (keyboards). Matt is Rochester’s prince of crooner dub, inspiring grins, head bobs and the feeling of getting away with something.
The easy space-soul of “Electrocute Me” toys naively between the sheets, landscaping electrical schemes of entendre. On “Homesick,” Matt the songwriter breaks walls of perspective as lyrical and melodic elements riddle and cascade in unison. Somehow, an obvious mixed-meter groove perfectly supports the arc, with grids of deft lead-guitar work.
“Flat Earth” races popular conspiracies against one another to produce a richly coated space-echo soul-folk sound that captures Flying Object’s live energy. My girlfriend told me that the earth is flat, he sings. I don’t really know about that / What about UFOs? I know we used to believe in those.
The tie-dye, slow-funk jam of “New Hat” proclaims gentle slow prose through a bitten lower lip, with a modulated extended solo. “Trouble With You” prolongs love in a minor country backbeat, where one would rather be asleep than in someone’s presence. The proudly creeping “Snaggletooth” develops around a toothy motif with soaring vocals atop a bumping double-guitar sonic blanket.
“Ranger” soothes with an apologetic swing, lyrically yearning to be a better man via Matt’s athletic vocal performance. In a Pulp-esque disco croon, “Can’t Just Go Around Sayin’” surrounds blame and betrayal: No you can’t just go around sayin’ things like that to boys.
Closer “Photographer” rides lines of support and resentment within a relationship, as Flying Object lands “Homesick” with honey soul as on-the-nose as the romantics it depicts.
Ryan M. Yarmel is a contributor to CITY.
This article appears in Dec 1-31, 2024.
