by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
New Orleans trio Lawn released their second album, Johnny, less than two weeks ago via Community Records and Muscle Beach, an incredible album that stands among the best we’ve heard this Summer. Much like the exceptional Blood On The Tracks before it, the album covers a wide range of musical inspiration from hard wired post-punk to jangly indie-pop, proving that the band excel at whatever they attempt, unafraid to take chances with folk, power-pop, any beyond as they always nail the landing. A lot of comparisons get thrown around when writing about Lawn, but what might be true one song is irrelevant the next, and that’s what make Mac Folger and Rui DeMagalhaes’ project such a special one. They bounce from shimmering pop to jittery punk and back with a graceful cohesion, everything feels perfectly in place, as structures both push and pull.
“Honest To God / Paper” may be the best example of their baiting tension, as two songs are glued together into one where it seems near impossible to have one without the other. “Honest To God” is a skeletal post-punk dirge, built on a single plodding bass note and muted vocals with a touch of melodic brilliance and the occasional doubled vocals and reverb applied just for a second. It’s haunting and infectious, and the mesmerizing spaciousness is endlessly welcome, but then “Paper” comes in with a rusty pounding distortion before opening the gates to a big groove and barked punk vocals that shout with its own hypnotic pulse. It’s a big part of what makes Lawn one of New Orleans’ best bands and now it has a lyrics video directed by Zack Shorrosh with all the excitement of household blinds, chandeliers, and the band reading/napping. The videos simple look works to highlight the song, a nice juxtaposition of Lawn’s energetic pairing.