We first featured the music of Boy Scouts, aka San Francisco’s Taylor Vick, last summer. Back then we said that we hoped Boy Scouts would have a more substantial release soon, and what do you know, that hope has come true. The project’s debut album, Homeroom Breakfast, has just been released, and its everything we thought a Boy Scouts full-length would be.
The opening track ‘Ode’ introduces both the sound and themes of the album very nicely. “Twenty five, barely getting by”, Vick sings “you’re still the guy I look to, do you know why?”, before the song kicks up with percussion and a sweet and catchy chorus of “we don’t say it / but we don’t need to”.
The second track is the super short ‘I Mean These Things’, which is almost like a standalone chorus about the way a loved one can erase all doubt and worry (“everything i write is the same and everything i mean i don’t say / ‘cept you and i fall right out of the category”). The stripped back acoustics on ‘Marinate’ match the song’s atmosphere perfectly, the first time the album hits a purely sad and reflective note, as Vick sings,
“i’m an introvert attracted to the
extrovert lifestyle
can i be me
if i change my mind
and be more worthwhile”
[bandcamp width=100% height=120 album=2939551087 size=large bgcol=ffffff linkcol=0687f5 tracklist=false artwork=small track=487369986]
‘July 9 2015’ has a real Free Cake For Every Creature vibe, the gentle indie pop backed with shambling percussion. In a premiere with our friends at The Le Sigh, Vick explains that the song was written in response to finishing college and moving back home. But refreshingly, the song isn’t the regular future-gazing that post-university blues usually bring. As Vick explains,
“I was journaling in the coffee shop across the street from my apartment and it was one of the first moments I allowed myself to be like, “what just happened?!!” instead of “ok now what? what’s next now that you’ve graduated?” it felt like I was losing sight of all the growth and experiences I just had because I was constantly thinking about what was expected of me to do next. I just wanted to write about the present moment and about the things I was sure of instead of allowing myself to be engulfed by my uncertainty.”
The atmosphere is decidedly understated on ’23’, a song about getting older in years but not necessarily in mind (at least all the time) that’s full of nice turn of phrase like “i’m a selfish hugger / you’re a confusing lover”. We described ‘Did You See Me Cry’ previously as “a song with a soft and sad confidence, building to a finale of layered vocals”, the delicate acoustic guitar ringing quietly behind words thick with self-reflection and some kind of acceptance.
“i can keep four friendships alive
that’s my quota for this life
cigarettes out front the laundromat
say what you said and take it back”
[bandcamp width=100% height=120 album=2939551087 size=large bgcol=ffffff linkcol=0687f5 tracklist=false artwork=small track=3701394769]
‘Blue’ doesn’t sound as sad as the title and lyrics suggest, a subtly grooving bass line supporting one of the more upbeat sounding tracks on the album, while finale ‘The Park Behind Walmart’ has its own quiet confidence, with slapped drums and nicely layered vocals that twine around one another.
“walking walmart shopping center
i’d never been better
on my own two feet”
[bandcamp width=100% height=120 album=2939551087 size=large bgcol=ffffff linkcol=0687f5 tracklist=false artwork=small track=1587283226]
Boy Scouts makes sad-sounding songs that are a lot more than mere wallowing in self pity. There are no immediately rough edges, the whole atmosphere gently contemplative rather than bitterly confessional, but things aren’t sugar-coated either. The lack of angry snarls doesn’t mean everything is peachy, but equally the sad and lonely bedroom pop vibe doesn’t mean things are terrible either. And that’s the real triumph of the album, because it feels true.
Homeroom Breakfast is out on Mt. Home Arts and is available on cassette with lovely silk-screened art by Nora Einbender-Luks. You can also get it on a name-your-price download via the Boy Scouts Bandcamp page.
Also, in case you missed it, we spoke with Taylor about the album and her influences – check it out!
