First of all, with the death of Michael Jackson, the world loses an antidote to this lo-fi craze. Do I like Navigator’s Bad Children? I do. You should too. This album should be the final album in a brief aesthetic audio movement. At the start of the first song, you too will think "Oh no, my speakers have blown out!" Ha, ha. This crackling overblown microphone work is how it is to actually sound. Oh Michael Jackson, how we, music listeners of the world, need overproduced music more than ever.

Navigator makes some catchy tunes. Shall I be blunt and say "typically indie" music? Country whiny cat vocals, acoustic strums, killer tambourine work makes the song "Ghost" good. You want to pass a flask on a back porch and listen to crickets chirp while it plays. By the time the song ends, your faithful dog, the one with an American flag bandanna carries a Frisbee over to you; and you feel good. Maybe even strum on your washboard along to this song.

I found myself liking "Work is Done" because it doesn’t hurt my ears. I mean this solo, sparse track (peaking only on the vocal), bringing a Langhorne Slim comparison to mind, strips away the noise nonsense and presents a pretty song. "The times get tough / but I get tougher." Silly heartfelt lyrics at times, but they are accessible to ears and angst.

The song "Blood" sounds awesome. Yowl along when it hits that chorus. Great chorus. I can’t make out the words, but maybe Arcade Fire will cover it one day, in a studio with good microphones. The rnb "Jesus Christ" is another goody placed towards the end of this brief album. Once again, I like Bad Children; or rather, I like the idea of it. With polish, this album could be awesome. Then again, this being offered free--clickity click--it could, fingers, crossed be unmastered.

MP3: Navigator- "Blood"



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-Article by Brian Rowe

Labels: album review, bad children, folk pop, garage, lo-fi, navigator, noisy as hell