The Posies, led by the duo of Jonathan Auer and Ken Stringfellow, shot to modest fame after the release of their third album Frosting on the Beater. Boasting one of the most memorable first halves of music in the 1990’s, the album was an indie and college radio favorites. And it was on the wings of songs including Dream All Day and Flavor of the Month that this truly excellent album deserved all of the lauds.
But before the band shot to fame, they were first independent artists and then nurtured by DGC. Their first album, Failure, was a low key affair—a simple duet between Auer and Stringfellow. But the roughshod, melodic album spoke volumes for the band The Posies could be—and would eventually be. Following up the local (Seattle, Washington) success of that record, the band signed with DGC and was allowed to add better production value to their sound.
The follow-up 1990 disc, Dear 23, was an ambitious although quaint release. And while it’s not perfect, there are certainly a number of memorable moments. Dear 23 was the band at their essence, not as thickened and coagulated (although wonderfully) on Frosting on the Beater. The songs here are good, the harmonies are incredible. But the main problems with the album are with the emotion. At this time in their career, The Posies took themselves very seriously. They don’t sound fun or friendly. And if anything can be pointed to as the worst aspect of this album that would certainly be it. But with that said Dear 23 is an interesting primer to The Posies.
Dear 23 yielded one humble hit—Golden Blunders. Now by the word “hit,” I mean it actually landed on the Top Modern Rock Tracks in 1990. Of course, many people not acquainted with the scene were left unaware of the band but that song was definitely representative of the rest of the album. A combination of light, jangly percussion and unassuming guitars mixed with superb harmonies and just damn good writing is exquisite when it is right. And when it is wrong? Well, it’s only forgettable and fortunately not painful. But with that said, there’s too much that is forgettable on Dear 23. I would have appreciated hearing more chipper songs. On the whole, this album is plaintive and angst-ridden. That’s fine enough, but the infusion of some zest and verve would have been incredibly helpful.
Excellent songs range from the acoustic, classically wonderful pop of Golden Blunders to the abrupt and quirky My Big Mouth (think The Beatles in 1990) and from the slightly heavier guitars of Help Yourself to the yummy, old-fashioned harmony of Suddenly Mary. But my favorite songs here are unfortunately the first two, thus negative the usefulness of the rest of the disc. Not to say the whole thing isn’t palatable—it’s just the best is presented immediately.
My Big Mouth is immediately comfortable and somehow also recognizable (maybe thanks to a very large, very progressive college radio station). Fun, flippant, and fantastic the song possesses all the things that make for great pop music. The melody is instantly memorable, something that lends itself incredibly well to the overall quality of the disc. Also seamless are Auer and Stringfellow’s paired vocals. This is exactly the kind of music I’d expect from a modern reincarnation of The Beatles.
Speaking of The Beatles, Ringo Starr covered Golden Blunders on his 1992 album Time Takes Time. But this original version smacks of implausibly sheer, natural talent. Once again, the band manages to put together a song full of lyrical hooks and truly incredible melodies. Pop music just doesn’t get better than this, and the mark of a great pop song is intelligent and catchy lyrics:
You're gonna watch what you say for a long time
You're gonna suffer the guilt forever
You're gonna get in the way at the wrong time
You're gonna mess up things you thought you would never
As for the songs that make zero impact, well, they aren’t all bad. Auer and Stringfellow sound great, I just am left wondering what more could have been done to spruce the song up. They are too slow and too monotonous for my liking, but I suppose The Posies couldn’t always be at the top of their game as they were with My Big Mouth and Golden Blunders. The songs that I’d suggest listening to once or twice and then skipping are: Apology, the overlong Flood of Sunshine, the melodramatic You Avoid Parties, Mrs. Green, and Everyone Moves Away.
Overall, there are some exceptionally worthy songs here. But I’m hard pressed to say that two excellent and a few decent tracks make up for those that just don’t go anywhere and are in the end boring. It’s hard not to crack a smile when listening to The Posies and for that matter Dear 23. But just know that The Posies may best be enjoyed in the form of a personalized mix tape containing a few songs from each album.
Good, but definitely not great outing.
Rating: 3/5 stars
Track Listing:
01. My Big Mouth
02. Golden Blunders
03. Apology
04. Any Other Way
05. You Avoid Parties
06. Suddenly Mary
07. Help Yourself
08. Mrs. Green
09. Everyone Moves Away
10. Flood of Sunshine
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