by Devon Chodzin (@bigugly)
Fans of indie rock, rejoice: bedbug’s Dylan Citron is here to finally bring the long-dead genre back. With the help of three friends in the Boston DIY scene, the accomplished bedroom-emo-pop sensation has proven that indie rock is here to stay on their self-titled EP. The five-track tape features reworkings of hit bedbug tracks spanning six years that make the most of classic four-piece rock band instrumentation. While the halcyon bedroom pop days of multi-tracked guitars and fuzzy synths may be behind the project, there is no need to mourn; bedbug’s singular approach to diaristic songwriting suits indie rock well, revealing a versatility to Citron’s vocals. If previous bedbug records were best suited to solo listening in one’s bedroom, then this record is best suited in community with fellow listeners in a house venue’s showcasing space.
The self-titled EP brims with re-spun bedbug classics spanning their entire bedroom emo output. Citron originally released “songs about ghosts” on a 2016 demo compilation; the reworked “songs about ghosts” stands as the EP’s lead single, bridging bedroom pop bedbug to bold indie bedbug. The track is still characteristically twinkly as bedbug weaves in the emo influences that have a history on their discography. The EP’s closer, the band version of “leaving town, moving to a national park,” slightly reduces the samples and tape hiss that made the standout 2016 track resonate in favor of full-bodied percussion, bobbing guitar lines, and more cacophonous multi-tracked vocals that privilege fortitude over introspection.
“love and everything after” and “life like bigger screens” originated on bedbug’s most recent Joy Void full-length, life like moving pictures, the final installation in a trilogy of bedroom pop with a lofi emo hue, and some of Citron’s most fuzzy-feeling-inducing music as a soloist. In full band setup, the tracks retain their home-brewed charm. “love and everything after” is a dynamic – at times nearly bombastic – indie rock centerpiece designed for hollering along, particularly with the climactic line: “they died doing what they loved.” “life like bigger screens” dials it back, briefly excising the drums in favor of measured fingerpicking and hushed vocals, providing a well-earned respite. Even when the percussion returns, the overall instrumentation remains simple, allowing Citron’s vocals to reign supreme until the controlled chaos of the outro.
Above all, the self-titled EP is an exercise in a new sound Citron is ready to embrace. It is a fitting progression from their collaboration with Puppy Problems, rose, water, fountain, a self-described “indie rock revival” project. In a scene where tape labels declare tongue-in-cheek that bedroom pop is dead, inhabiting a multifaceted indie rock sound promises new opportunities to breathe life into “dead” genres. Above all, it’s a great excuse to get your friends together and collaborate, and that’s exactly what Citron has proven. As hokey as it sounds, pandemic solitude has made all kinds of collaboration– artistic, academic, political, et cetera – feel even more precious, and bedbug’s self-titled EP is the product of a collaboration worth noting.