The Daily Spin, March 6
Faded Paper Figures | Morningside
Welcome back to the Daily Spin, the series in which I review 365 albums during 2023.
Each album will be given a rating on a scale from 0 to 10. You can look at the entire set here. Additionally, you can check out a list of my favorite song from each album right here.
If you want to suggest an album, good news! You can do so right here!
Album: Morningside (2023)
Artist: Faded Paper Figures
Link:
It feels as though Faded Paper Figures have lost their touch a little bit - after three really strong entries from 2010 through 2014, the last two projects have gone in a direction that feels more like ballast than balloons. The Matter, their 2012 effort, has so many tracks that feel distinctly Faded Paper Figures, while Morningside, to me, feels much more like a rote indie rock project seasoned with some mild electronica.
This is a strong combination, so it absolutely works - especially when they’re not afraid to break the mold. ‘Cold’ feels almost Glass Animals-esque, serpentine rasps weaving among bass-laden beats, while ‘Columbo’ weaves a glorious little funk through the closer, a touch that had me bobbing and weaving my head the whole way through.
All said and done, it’s still a good album in total - Faded Paper Figures undeniably know what they’re doing, and though it doesn’t hit like their old projects do, that could be as much that I’ve grown old as it is anything else.
Rating: 8.2/10
Best Tracks: Columbo; Cold; Brazilian Iris
Worst Tracks: New City