The Parlor | You Are Love and I Am You
(Independent)
The Parlor’s latest album, their 11th, finds them moving away from their earlier neofolk tendencies and fully embracing a unique blend they call “psychedelic dream-pop.” It’s as good a term as any to describe their combination of pop melody, electro-textures, and trip-hop rhythms. Based near Albany, the husband-and-wife duo of Eric Krans and Jen O’Connor could be the bastard offspring of Fleetwood Mac and the Eurythmics, reconceived for the 2020s. “The Cloud of Unknowing” sounds like Julee Cruise covering a John Cale love song backed by Mercury Rev, with a lovely chamber-pop arrangement featuring synths and strings. “Oceans” offers a more mainstream, hook-filled pop rock tune with washes of electronic fuzz and a major nod to the Mac’s “Dreams.” Hints of the Arcade Fire’s groove-powered art rock vie with ethereal vocals and dreamy soundscapes. Clocking in at 43 minutes, the gorgeous album was clearly conceived as an old-fashioned vinyl LP.
This article appears in October 2023.
