On The Phonograph... Whysall Lane.

Whysall Lane

Whysall Lane
(Blackball, 2006)


File under: Music

In the five years since the release of their glorious and under-appreciated swan song, Hurrah, Versus frontman Richard Baluyut seemed to drop completely off the radar, while his former band mates have taken their jabs at the spotlight (+/-, The Fontaine Toups), leaving this fan wondering if he'd in fact had his last "Hurrah" (who says I can't write a Pitchfork review?). So recently, with the help of my new friend The Internet, I decided to check up on the man. After a few "clicks", I was pleased to find that he has a new band called Whysall Lane and that their CD is now available. Well, look at that. My new friend is super.

The 10 songs on their self-titled debut should prove to any doubters that Baluyut was responsible, more than anyone else, for Versus' singular sound: by turns sanguine, muscular, lush and lean, but always with flawlessly memorable melodies upfront. Lyrically, as always, he's lamenting failed relationships through the left speaker while courting new ones through the right. And he's even found a new female foil in band mate Mikel Delgado (whose voice sounds remarkably like Fontaine Toups -- they could've called this band Versus and probably gotten away with it) adding poignancy to lyrics that might otherwise seem a tad too spiteful and/or cliché ridden.

To any Versus fan this record will be pleasantly familiar and to fans of our beloved locals, The Lindsay, that haven't yet investigated the Versus comparisons, this should be well worth checking out. It's clear Baluyut wants us to know that his former band is behind him, but I'm not so sure. When I play this record with my eyes closed, I'm listening to the new Versus record. Sorry, Richard, but we all know the past catches up to us. Luckily for me, it eventually caught up with you.